Naturals Ice Cream’s founder, Raghunandan Srinivas Kamath, has passed away at the age of 70. The ice-cream magnate died on the evening of 17 May, following a brief illness, at Mumbai’s Sir H. N. Reliance Foundation Hospital and Research Centre.
Naturals Ice Cream confirmed the news via their official handle on Twitter.
Our thoughts on the sad demise of our patron and founder of Naturals Ice Cream, Late (Shri) Raghunandan Kamath. Indeed a very sad and unfortunate day for us.
Regards,
The Naturals Family.
Date: 18th May, 2024. pic.twitter.com/6x5guC5ae8— Natural Ice Cream (@Naturalicecream) May 18, 2024
Early Life and Beginnings
Born to a mango vendor in Mulki, a town in the Mangaluru taluk of Dakshina Kannada district in Karnataka, Kamath helped his father in the fruit business from a young age. This early experience instilled in him appreciation for the natural flavours of fruits.
At the age of 14, Kamath left his village and boarded a train to Mumbai. He found work at his brother’s restaurant, Gokul Refreshments, where he began thinking of creating ice-cream with real fruit pulp. This dream was realised in 1984 when Kamath opened the first Naturals Ice Cream parlour in Juhu, Mumbai, starting with 12 flavours.
Naturals’ Growth
Initially, to attract customers, Kamath served ice-cream as a complementary dish alongside pav-bhaji. This strategy proved successful, and Naturals Ice Cream quickly became a household name. By 2020, the brand had expanded to 135 outlets across India, each known for its unique flavours made from natural ingredients without artificial flavouring.
Brand Valuation and Innovation
Naturals Ice Cream is valued at approximately ₹400 crore today. Kamath’s innovation materialized in the form of popular flavours such as Sitaphal, Tender Coconut, Jackfruit, Muskmelon and Kala Jamun. The Tender Coconut flavour is particularly notable, being listed among the Top 100 most iconic ice-creams in the world by Taste Atlas.
Tributes
Kamath’s journey was extensively covered in the book “Intelligent Fanatics of India,” co-authored by Mumbai-based journalist Pooja Bhula. Bhula remembers Kamath not only for his passion for ice cream but also for his character and sense of humour. “As much as his ice creams, people will also remember him for his warmth, loyalty that was greatly reciprocated by his franchisees,” she shared.
Many tributes have poured in, with many remembering Kamath as the “Ice Cream Man of India.”
Heartfelt Tributes & Condolences to the family of
Great “ice cream” Entrepreneur,
founder of everyone’s favourite NATURAL ICE-CREAM,
Sri Raghunandan Kamath,The Entrepreneurial Story of the “Ice Cream Man of India” should be a case study for @IIMAhmedabad @IIM_Bangalore IIMs pic.twitter.com/5lgP1HkOED
— BJP Dakshina Kannada (@BjpMangaluru) May 19, 2024
A few years ago I did a top 5 ice cream brands of Mumbai feature for YouTube and I learned a great deal about the history of the Naturals Icecream brand I did not know and it made me appreciate their product even more. The man R S Kamath who created @Naturalicecream passed away… pic.twitter.com/iIcS7Ev1xV
— Tara Deshpande (@Tara_Deshpande) May 18, 2024
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