Wow Momo Startup Story – Behind every successful startup lies consistent efforts, hard work, and countless sleepless nights. Wow Momo was founded by Sagar Daryani and Binod Homagai, started with a small momo cart in the streets of Kolkata, their unwavering dedication and innovative approach transformed a small cart into a renowned brand. So, let’s understand the mystery behind transforming a small momo cart into a Brand with +650 outlets.
Starting Stage
The Journey of Wow Momo begins when the two entrepreneurial mindset people Sagar Daryani and Binod Homagai meet each other during their undergraduate studies in St. Xavier’s College (Kolkata). They both went for Bachelor of Commerce (B.Com) degrees at St. Xavier’s College, where they became friends. Both shared a passion for entrepreneurship and a love for food, particularly the momo. During their college days, they noticed the widespread popularity of momos among students and locals, then they decided to start a momo business. At that time they both were 21 years old, their B.Com program was still continuing and they planned to launch a momo cart, they both pooled their savings and with just Rs.30,000 they finally launched it on 29 August 2008 at Spencer’s retail in Kolkata, India. They didn’t outsourced momos, rather they prepared momos by themselves. Their main aim was to provide High quality, Affordable, Hygienic, and Delicious momos to the streets of Kolkata.
From Street Cart to First Branded Outlet
The year 2010 was the turning point for Wow Momo, Sagar and Binod met Rajan Anandan (A prominent investor), and they both impressed Rajan Anandan with their ideas, team dynamics, growth, and plans. Anandan recognized the potential in the startup and decided to fund them, utilizing these funds they opened their first Wow Momo branded outlet on 11 December 2010 at Spencer’s Hypermarket in South City Mall, Kolkata.
After opening their first branded outlet in 2010, Wow Momo continued to operate both their carts and the new outlet simultaneously for a period. This dual approach allowed them to serve different customer segments effectively: the carts catered to customers seeking quick, while the branded outlet provided a relaxed dining experience to the customers.
Expansion and Growth
The success of Wow Momo’s first outlet motivated them to expand. In 2012, Wow Momo introduced its franchise model, which was again a turning point in Wow Momo’s success story. The franchise model allowed the company to expand its footprint without the need for significant upfront capital. The expansion was driven by the combination of franchising and company-owned outlets, each designed to deliver the best Wow Momo experience. This franchise approach not only speed up the expansion but also facilitated entry into diverse regional markets. The franchise model also contributed towards brand building, enhancing brand visibility and credibility across different cities in India.
The franchise model diversified Wow Momo’s revenue streams: franchise fees, royalties, and revenue-sharing agreements provided a steady income stream while leveraging the entrepreneurial spirits and resources of franchise partners.
Later, Wow Momo launched its sister companies: Wow China and Wow chicken
- Wow China: It is a brand extension of Wow Momo, aimed at offering a variety of Chinese cuisine to cater to a broader customer base. Wow China outlets typically offer a menu featuring popular Chinese dishes, including noodles, fried rice, Manchurian dishes, and other specialties.
- Wow Chicken: It is another brand under the Momo Foods Pvt. Ltd. umbrella, it was launched to diversify Wow Momo’s menu offerings and appeal to a wider demographic of chicken lovers. The menu at Wow Chicken includes a variety of chicken dishes such as chicken momos, fried chicken, grilled chicken, and other chicken-based snacks and meals.
Wow Momo started with their first outlet in 2010 and as of 2024, they have more than 650 outlets across India, cities like Delhi, Mumbai, Chandigarh, Jaipur, Noida, Gurugram, Bengaluru, Pune, and many more.
Challenges and struggles
Challenges are pervasive in the journey of every business or startup. Overcoming these challenges through strategic decision-making is essential for businesses to distinguish themselves. Wow Momo, too, has faced numerous challenges on its path to growth and success:
- Financial challenge: When Wow Momo was started, its founders were students at that time and didn’t have enough money to open a shop then they pooled their savings of Rs.30,000 and started Wow Momo with a small cart. Sourcing additional funds for opening a shop and expansion was their biggest challenge.
- Legal challenges: Dealing with local regulations and licenses required for operating food carts and outlets was another challenge they faced.
- Competition: The food industry is highly competitive, even more so in crowded cities like Kolkata from where Wow Momo initially began. They had to differentiate themselves from other street food vendors and later from other momo chains that emerged.
- Scaling the business: They expanded beyond the single cart to multiple outlets, scaling while maintaining quality and customer satisfaction posed its own set of challenges.
- Operational challenges: Managing operations efficiently and ensuring consistent quality while scaling up was another hurdle. From sourcing ingredients to maintaining hygiene standards and ensuring timely delivery, operational challenges were significant.
- Supply chain management: Ensuring a reliable supply chain for fresh ingredients and maintaining quality consistency across multiple outlets presented logistical challenges.
- COVID-19: Like many businesses, Wow Momo faced disruptions due to the COVID-19 pandemic, including temporary closures, reduced foot traffic, and shifts in consumer behavior towards online ordering and takeaway.
- Franchise challenge: Introducing and managing a franchise model brought challenges such as maintaining brand consistency, providing adequate training to franchisees, and balancing centralized control with local autonomy.
Innovative Offerings
Menu Updation: The company introduced a variety of flavors, including tandoori momos, chocolate momos, pizza momos, and sizzler momos. This allowed Wow Momo to stand out over the competitors.
New Product Lines: In addition to momos, Wow Momo expanded its menu to include other items such as Wow Kathi Rolls, Thukpa (Tibetan noodle soup), Rice bowls, and various Beverages. This not only increased the brand’s appeal but also contributed to higher average transaction value.
Technology: Wow Momo used technology in several innovative ways to enhance its business operations and customer experience. They have developed a user-friendly website and a mobile app for customers to place orders conveniently, they also integrated with popular food delivery platforms like Swiggy and Zomato. They use the Enterprise Resource Planning system (ERP) for inventory management and logistics optimization for smooth operations and minimum wastage.
Business Model
Wow Momo is headquartered in Kolkata, India. It operates as a Quick Service Restaurant (QSR) chain specializing in Momos/Dumplings. Its business model involves both owned stores as well as franchises. They open their outlets in places with high footfall like malls, metro stations, crowded areas, or office complexes. They have tailored their business in such a way that they can easily cater to both customers preferring dine-in as well as quick takeaways.
Wow Momo’s business model includes a centralized kitchen for their franchise outlets where the production of momos takes place – including preparing the filling, dough, and final product, from the centralized kitchen these prepared products are distributed to different franchise outlets using refrigerated vehicles. This concept allows Wow Momo franchises to quickly serve food to the customers, they just have to do assembly, steaming, and serving rather than preparation and cooking. This centralization process ensures consistency in taste, quality, and size of products across all locations. It also facilitates efficient operations and scalability while maintaining hygiene standards and meeting customer expectations effectively.
Logistics management is also a part of Wow Momo’s business model, they optimize logistics to ensure timely delivery of momos to their franchises with minimum wastage and maintaining efficiency. This supports their goal of providing fresh and quality products to the customers.
Their business model emphasizes a mix of dining options, takeaways, and delivery service which is facilitated through partnerships with third-party delivery platforms like Swiggy and Zomato.
The main strategies applied by Wow Momo include focusing on convenient locations, efficient service delivery, and adapting menus to local tastes. They have expanded their offerings beyond momos to include other quick bites and beverages, enhancing their appeal to a broader customer base.
Current Status and Future Plans
As of today, Momo Foods Pvt. Ltd. (Parent company) is headquartered in Kolkata, West Bengal, India, and operates 3 prominent brands – Wow Momo, Wow Chicken, and Wow China which collectively have over +650 outlets in major cities in India including Mumbai, Delhi, Chennai, Hyderabad, Bengaluru, gurugram, etc. Currently, the brand runs its outlets domestically but has plans for future global expansion. They offer an extensive range of momos with various fillings, as well as innovative menu items such as Momo-filled burgers (Moburgs), Thukpa, Rice bowls, various beverages, and many more. The company utilizes the same centralized kitchen model for food preparation, ensuring consistency and quality across all franchise outlets. Prepared foods are efficiently distributed to franchises, which are then served to customers through multiple channels, including dine-in, takeaways, and deliveries.
According to the latest financial reports, Wow! Momo has achieved impressive revenue growth. In the fiscal year 2023-2024, the company reported a revenue of INR 413 crore, a substantial rise from INR 220 crore in the previous fiscal year 2022-2023. This represents a revenue increase of approximately 88.6%. The company’s total net worth is more than INR 2100 crores and has employed more than +6000 people. Their main revenue streams include selling products to their franchises, franchise fees, royalties, and direct sales through company-owned outlets.
Today, Sagar Daryani (Founder and CEO) directs overall operations and focuses on brand development, Binod Homagai (Founder and COO) ensures operational excellence and manages day-to-day operations, emphasizing quality control and smooth running of the company’s various outlets. In 2010, they were joined by one of their college friends Shah Miftaur Rahman as a Co-Founder who currently holds the position of CFO and oversees the company’s cost control and finances. In 2018, another college friend Murlikrishnan joined Wow Momo as Co-Founder who currently holds the position of CMO, leading efforts in marketing and brand building.
Mission statement: Wow Momo’s mission is to deliver extraordinary experiences to their customers through innovative, High-quality, Hygienic momo dishes that exceed customer’s expectations.
Vision statement: Their vision is to become the world’s leading brand in the momo category, also the company aspires to expand its presence globally while maintaining its quality, authenticity, and hygiene.
Conclusion - Wow Momo Startup Story
In conclusion, the Wow Momo startup story has been filled with various ups and downs. Their journey was not easy; it started from a small cart with just INR 30,000 and transformed into a company valued at more than 2100 crores, thanks to their hard work and strategies. They placed a strong emphasis on quality, hygiene, and customer satisfaction. Currently, they operate their business domestically, but they have plans to expand internationally in the near future and establish themselves as leaders in the momo category, akin to brands like McDonald’s and Domino’s.
Two essential qualities that every entrepreneur should possess are innovation and creativity. Wow Momo exemplifies these qualities through its inventive menu offerings and business strategies, which have enabled it to outshine its competitors.
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FAQs
We’ve learned that whether you start big or small, what truly matters is taking the first step. Success hinges on having a clear vision, prioritizing customer satisfaction, embracing innovation, and maintaining high product quality. The Wow Momo startup story exemplifies these principles perfectly.
Sagar Daryani and Binod Homagai played crucial roles in the Wow Momo startup story. As founders, their vision, dedication, and entrepreneurial spirit were key in evolving a small street cart into a prominent fast-food chain.
Innovation played an important role in the Wow Momo startup story. The founders introduced a unique service formats, such as Kiosks and carts, to reach a wider audience. Also, they continually innovated their menu offerings and customer experience, which helped Wow Momo establish as a standout brand in the fast-food industry.
The main figures in the Wow Momo startup story are Sagar Daryani and Binod Homagai, who played a crucial role, along with Shah Miftaur Rahman and Murlikrishnan. Their combined efforts and vision were instrumental in the company’s success.
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