Innovative technology, access to finances and investments, and a rapidly growing consumer base with high disposable incomes and larger than life ambitions have nourished entrepreneurship and birthed many new brands in the Indian market. Salud, is one of Indias leading urban lifestyle and international awards winning brand, excelling within multiple market segments. What started as an alco-bev company quickly evolved into an all-encompassing urban lifestyle brand specializing in alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages, clothing, music, and NFTs. As a homegrown business, Salud has established itself within India and is now representing the country on the international stage through its venture into multiple countries. Salud has transcended being a brand and has become a way of life for consumers in their day to day lives.
Ajay Shetty – Founder-Director – Salud
Salud‘s strategic plan of diversifying into various segments such as alcobev, non-alcobev products, music, clothing, NFTs, and premium gin has disrupted the market in terms of capturing and reaching every consumer household. The brand was launched during the COVID-19 pandemic, when most businesses were reducing staff, thinking lean, or shutting down, with India‘s first Gin & Tonic RTD. The success of the company in the following years should impact how individuals assess risk during periods of economic downturn, especially with a sound plan in place. Saluds journey began by breaking into the alcoholic beverage space, aiming to not only create a convenient, tasty, and health-centric drink but also change the way individuals celebrate life. The vision eventually expanded to include the multiple verticals we see within the brand today, such as Salud‘s non-alcoholic bitters, merchandise, music, and the NFTs. Throughout its growth, Salud has retained its core vision: helping individuals come together and celebrate life globally.
Salud has consistently aimed to be at the forefront of trends, allowing it to have the first-mover advantage in many of its ventures. As the first Indian brand to introduce an alcoholic bottled RTD, Salud cemented itself as a disruptor within the Indian beverage market from day one. Their initial release of G&T 2.0 simplified the drinking experience by offering a low-alcohol alternative to the options on the market at the time. The impact Salud had on the RTD space is evident in hindsight, as numerous local and international companies have been seen entering the space with their versions of the drink. Consumer attitude and behaviour towards alcohol are shifting, and younger generations are prioritizing convenience and health more than ever before. Salud has capitalized on this shift and provided consumers with an incredible product to perfectly match their desires. As a disruptor, Salud has changed the game, going beyond competitive prices and swanky retail showrooms. Salud‘s strategies are based on a deep understanding of what the consumer of tomorrow is going to look like and what the product needs to evolve into.
Developing on its theme of firsts, Salud soon became the first Indian RTD brand to win multiple awards on the global stage, winning for its impeccable beverages in the highly respected International Wine and Spirit Competition (IWSC) in London and the extremely competitive China Wine and Spirits Awards (CWSA) in Hong Kong. Leading the RTD space within India, Salud has not only disrupted the market through its meteoric rise but also through its expansion into other international markets.
Salud continued to innovate and function as a disruptor by being the first company within its segment to venture into the Web 3.0 space with a defined roadmap. Through their foray into the Metaverse, Salud has been able to penetrate an untapped market and grow the Salud family across the globe. Through collaboration with Asias highest-selling NFT artists, they have created beautiful NFT artwork that perfectly portrays the brands essence. Although a significant part of the NFT programme focuses on unlocking a massive consumer base, the crux of the programme is to provide each individual that buys an NFT with value that extends far beyond the breathtaking artwork. Within Saluds roadmap, they have included multiple perks that NFT owners will soon be able to get, such as early access to Salud Sessions music and limited edition merchandise. Eventually, select NFT owners will be given 5% of all merchandise sales. Entering the Web 3.0 space demonstrates Salud‘s commitment to continually innovate. The Metaverse is predicted to grow in significance and ubiquity over the coming decade, and being involved in the digital market this early is sure to give Salud a significant advantage. As more brands understand the significance of the Metaverse, they will inevitably follow Salud‘s initiative and have to invest in their artists, audience growth, and roadmap within the digital landscape, something that Salud has already begun.
A brand as unique and disruptive as Salud must have an equally unique and disruptive founder, and Ajay Shetty is exactly that. Ajay spent the first seven years of his professional career in New York and Hong Kong as an investment banker for Merrill Lynch and Morgan Stanley. After success in the financial world, he took a bold step and left his job to start Myra Vineyards, a Wine production business in India, which was eventually acquired by the second largest wine producer in the country. Soon after, Ajay founded Salud and began an entirely new journey in an (almost) completely new domain. Ajays bold and innovative nature is reflected in Saluds story and will continue to play a critical role in the companys success as they continue to disrupt multiple market segments.
About Salud
Salud an idea that evolved into an urban lifestyle brand purely through the impact of our innovative strategy and the brands necessity in a market like India. Salud intends to position itself as a Global Lifestyle Brand with a universal appeal and variety in flavors, Music and Fashion. Salud has created India’s first of its kind Ready-To-Drink Gin & Tonic beverage called G&T 2.0 in a variety of flavors along with Strong and Sonic (Soda+Tonic) respectively. With a vision where people come together and CelebrateLife with a touch of exclusivity, Salud aims to change the way one unwinds with its quintessence in a bottle, which is recognised globally as they have attained awards at the International scale such as The London Spirits Competition, International Wine and Spirits Competition, CWSC, etc. It is both modern in taste and style, with a vibe that caters to its target audience and is gender agnostic in all its verticals.
Salud sessions, the House and Techno music label, which has signed up various talented local and international artists who come together and create tracks which add to the uniqueness of what our culture stands for.
Keeping up with the trends, Salud Merchandise has created a distinct splash with their clothing lines, which is gender agnostic and is carefully designed for anyone to mix and match with their outfits and stand out from the crowd.
By launching the brand in a couple of Indian states and in process to be available pan-India, followed by an endorsement for an Inter-Continental distribution deal for various International markets such as the Middle East and the UK, Salud is changing the way the world parties.
Highlighting growth and change is an essence to its vision, Salud makes an entry into the NFT space where a full fledged roadmap for the Web3.0 has been mapped to finally make its mark in the Metaverse.
The key investors sharing our ideas, Anthill Ventures, Rana Dagubatti a celebrated actor, Prasad Vanga from Anthill, Srini Koppolu, former managing director of Microsoft India, are all our speed scaling partners who are the backbones in this pathway along with founder-director Ajay Shetty, previously a banker and now an entrepreneur who successfully sold his former wine venture and now to lead a unique Urban Lifestyle brand.
Find us on,
Website: www.salud.co.in
Twitter: twitter.com/saludbeverages
Instagram: www.instagram.com/saludbeverages/hl=en
Linkedin: in.linkedin.com/company/salud-beverages
