Rano Singh came up with the concept for Pansaari—a place where Washington DC residents could pick up a variety of Indian ingredients and learn from Indian cooking class—after being dissatisfied with what local Indian grocery stores were trying to pawn off as authentic. With a Kickstarter campaign earlier this year, Singh successfully raised enough funds to reimagine a former nightclub building as a hybrid grocery store and cooking class hub.
The communal space was thought up as a place where people can learn how to combine spices and add them to their diet. Spices in the store are sourced directly from India, since Singh notes she found "It was difficult for an Indian, like me, to distinguish between a brown powder that could be cumin, or coriander, or even garam masala" in American stores.
Why This Trend Is Growing
- Authentic Cultural Food
- Opportunity for businesses to offer educational and authentic cultural food in hybrid grocery store and cooking class hub.
- Direct Sourcing
- Opportunity for businesses to source ingredients directly from their country of origin to ensure authenticity and differentiation.
- Experiential Learning
- Opportunity for businesses to incorporate experiential learning in grocery stores to create a sense of community and added value for customers.
Industries Being Reshaped
- Ethnic Grocery Stores
- Ethnic grocery stores can offer cooking classes and workshops to create unique experiences for their customers.
- Online Specialty Groceries
- Online specialty groceries can focus on direct sourcing of exotic ingredients to differentiate from traditional grocers.
- Food Tourism
- Food tourism can incorporate experiential learning and authentic cultural food as part of their travel packages.
