Salad delivered on subscription becomes the lifestyle choice

Freshlings and Saladaa offer subscription-based salad services in Chennai, catering to health-conscious residents post-pandemic.

In recent years, the concept of subscription-based meal services, popular in other cities through the decades-old Dabbawalla services, has taken a good turn in Chennai with a healthy twist: salad boxes. Chennai residents are signing up for fresh salads delivered at their doorstep every day, based on their weekly or monthly subscription plan.

Preeta Suresh is the founder of Freshlings, which has been serving salads, including those of Mexican, Mediterranean, and Lebanese styles, for three years. She says her customer base has seen a noticeable shift. “People in their late 30s and early 40s, who are more concerned about their lifestyle choices, are taking action now. It is because of the tremendous exposure in the city after the COVID-19 pandemic,” Ms. Preeta says, adding that Freshlings sources its ingredients from hydroponic farmers in Chennai.

“Though a salad start-up, we are not looking at it commercially; we want to contribute real value to our customers and stakeholders. Which is why, we use hydroponic crops,” she adds. While the start-up doesn’t promote weight loss through its salads, Ms. Preeta emphasises that its goal is to build a healthy lifestyle for long-term well-being through 12- and 20-day subscription plans.

The idea of ‘subscription-based salad’ has also been on the rise after the COVID-19 pandemic, says the founders of the homegrown salad brands.

When Saladboy started its subscription service in 2021, covering Sholinganalur, Velachery, East Coast Road, and Medavakkam, its founder Anish Kumar expected a lot of gym junkies and information technology professionals to hop on board.

But the plot has been entirely different as most of its regulars are not the corporate crowd. “It has mostly been young mothers treating themselves to self-care through salads,” says Mr. Anish.

The brand has also changed the menu by tailoring its salads to Indian tastes. It is sending out 80 salad boxes a day, and with the demand growing, it is gearing up to expand the monthly salad subscriptions to more parts of Chennai this year.