Tricity Stars: The baker who became a brand

Rise and shine

One of Rajni Mittal’s constant companions in the kitchen was a young Nikhil, brimming with amazement and curiosity, watching as she sieved the flour, added baking soda and powder, measured the sugar, whisked the eggs, folded in butter and poured the ‘deliciously magical mix’ in the good ol’ round oven. Baking time with mum was a slice of heaven for little Nikhil. “What is this, why are you adding this, how does it work…I would pester her,” says Nikhil, tuning into his chocolate-dipped memories.

As he grew, so did his sweet tooth and love for baking, and his father Vinod Mittal noticed it. “He encouraged me to pursue a career in it, and I joined the Food Craft Institute straight out of Class XII, in 1998.” His grandmother was pretty annoyed though with his father – “You want him to be a bawarchi, she chided him,” laughs Nikhil, who graduated with a Diploma in Bakery and Confectionery and soon after underwent training at the Hyatt Regency, in Delhi.

But this was not enough. “Baking is a western import, an exact science, and I wondered how they approached it abroad,” Nikhil moved to Australia where he earned a degree in European Patisserie and Food & Technology, and worked for five years. “Mixing of ingredients at an even temperature, introducing bacteria, preservatives, quality, the logistics of bakery business – this was where my techniques got honed and I had no intention of coming back.” With his teacher Chef Hardy as his mentor, Nikhil continued to train and work in some of the world’s best bakeries in Australia. And in 2003, was nominated for the category of ‘Best Chef in South Australia’.

In the meantime, entrepreneur Vinod Mittal, who had a pulse on the market, saw a gap in the premium bakery product business. “I used to send pictures of the cakes and confections I made, and my father insisted I start a European-styled bakery in Chandigarh.” The passion to do something “in India, for India” brought him back to Chandigarh in 2005. A year of prep began – endless recipes were tested, staff was hired and trained, location was designed to impress, ingredients and machinery imported. Nikhil opened his first flagship store, Nik Baker’s in Chandigarh’s Sector 9 in 2006.

Chefs are artists, focused on their creation. To slip into an entrepreneurial avatar, Nikhil had to turn risk-taker, for which his father gave him the courage.

Knead to know

The aroma of freshly baked bread, buttery croissants that melt in your mouth, goodness of sweet almond cookies, creamy layers of cake, hot cups of cocoa – happiness starts in a bakery. The ‘bread and butter’ of his life, Nikhil’s secret to having an epically beloved bakery is consistency and uncompromising quality. “The difference between the west and India is professionalism. Here, we tend to take shortcuts – like, a cheesecake requires mascarpone cheese, but we pick the cheaper option. Not in the West. I wanted to replicate this work ethic, and it was a colossal challenge,” says Nikhil, who went overseas to buy the high-end machinery, and is still one of the biggest buyers of French Callebaut chocolate.

Educating, grooming and training staff was another mountain to scale. “I had an expensive set up and made sure my staff got into the habit of working with caution, without making a mess.”

Rolling out a 200-plus product menu wasn’t cakewalk either. Rounds of testing were done – on the family first. “They continue to be my first tasters,” he says, rewinding to the very first confection he made for his folks – blueberry muffins (blueberries flown in from Mumbai) and French baguette. Suggestions were honoured: “Adding chocolate praline to the menu was my wife, Sharron’s idea, while chocolate mousse and thin crust pizza came from my sister-in-law, Prakriti.”

The rising agent 

Chefs are artists, focused on their creation. To slip into an entrepreneurial avatar, Nikhil had to turn risk-taker, for which his father gave him the courage. Ideas were brainstormed, and ventures undertaken – a baking culinary institute in Panchkula, stone cold gelatos, Euro-Asian themed restaurant, The Loaf in Sector 35 with its paneer tikka tarts, charcuterie board and imported salamis, he went all in. Great projects, but all ahead of their time as Nikhil had to shut down the institute and The Loaf.

While it made Nikhil a trendsetter, there were lessons learnt en route – “When you decide to grow, you have to play with volume. You can’t be juggling with too many things or products or ideas. You have to choose one and work on it,” he says, as he started streamlining production with a good mix of sweet, savoury and healthy bites, and sticking to retail only. He also saw potential in converting the bakery into a café, for people to sit and enjoy their coffee.

Nikhil also ran three high-end production facilities. Small in capacity, he shut them down and recently opened one massive facility which doubles as a corporate and production unit in Mohali – R&D, HR, management, food tech labs, in-house kitchens and bakery – all rolled out in one.

His vision board is up – build one such fully automated mega facility in each state, as they go on a Nik Baker’s ‘outlet-in-every-city’ marathon. “There are five in Delhi, and we are opening our 19th outlet in Pathankot, followed by Amritsar and Moga,” says Nikhil, adding how it took him 15 years to reach here, to build that kind of infrastructure to help him scale and sustain. “Rentals, ingredient costs are high in India, and we sustained by not only innovating, but by keeping enough margin between food cost and MRP.”

For a product to evolve into a brand, loyalty is a gamechanger. Nik Baker’s earned theirs with employees who’ve been with them from day one, with equal opportunity to women who form a major part of their management, HR, R&D, accounts departments, and honoring each and every customer feedback.

Covid too was a learning curve. Not only did he make sure customers got their daily essentials by getting special permission to stay open, he switched to digital mode with online training and food delivery, which they were not into before.

Sweet highs and sugar lows

Hands down, the first outlet was the biggest high point. “My work keeps me in a state of high. Every day is a new day and I love it.” The only downside for him is less time in the kitchen, “the side-effect of being an entrepreneur.”

Secret sauce

Competition keeps him on his toes – “the more, the merrier; for it leads to higher demand and supply and brings down prices of ingredients and equipment.” The ‘Dessert King’ of the North believes in being focused, calm and grounded. “No compromises, no shortcuts.” Great things in business are never done by one person, and Nikhil’s secret weapons are his father and brother Nittin, his greatest mentors, motivators and advisors.

The Tricity plan

We are planning to re-open the bakery culinary institute and work on my own channel. We are a brand because we value our work and our customers and for that we are developing a customer loyalty app,” says Nikhil, who is also penning a book on his journey, on baking, its business, and other secret ingredients.