Anokhi Shah, founder of Sea Salt cafe, loves to spread happiness through baking and her culinary skills. However, there’s more to this young enthusiastic entrepreneur than this. A passionate lover of art, craft and India’s rich textile heritage, Anokhi revels in fine fabrics and intricate designs. In this interview, she shares her entrepreneurial journey, her style statement and the joy of draping Studio Virtue’s Amrakadamb collection saris
Virtues Life
Tell us about your entrepreneurial journey?
I went to culinary school in New York. The Sea Salt cafe idea actually germinated from my school project. The whole process was realistic and organic too. My vision was very clear right from the beginning. The cafe started in October, 2019.
And the COVID-19 pandemic happened in 2020 and then things went through a massive transformation. We had to give up on our cafe space but we continued with our production. Retrospectively speaking, it was a wise decision and it really worked for us.
We shifted to a cloud kitchen mode and that kept the workflow going and thereby bringing in the revenue too. Today we also do B2B and provide bakery products to other cafes.
For me, the strongest point during the pandemic was giving up the dining space. Looking after the needs of my staff was my primary concern. I did not look beyond their welfare and today I am happy to say that the entire staff stayed with me during the pandemic. Collectively, we sailed through with our resilience and hard work.
I was deeply moved when one of my staff members said, “Sea Salt is my first job and it will be my last job.”
What advice to young entrepreneurs starting their journey in the Culinary World?
I would say, “Try everything.” You have to go very deep into everything and then understand the science behind it.
It’s all very detail-oriented. Be experimental and be open. These are the two golden rules that will help one in the journey of entrepreneurship.
As a young woman navigating through multiple worlds, how do you define your style?
I would say my style is classic, minimal and clean.
I love wearing saris. I wear sari even for my family dinners and on casual occasions. The best piece of advice came from my grandmother who told me that if you wear saris regularly then you will be comfortable in wearing it and you will not find any difficulty in draping it. Today, I can very well navigate through my work day wearing a sari. It gives me great joy.
As you love wearing saris, tell us about your experience of being dressed in Studio Virtues Amrakadamb saris.
I love draping the Amrakadamb saris that are so unique. They bring with them an element of rich texture, delicacy and absolute grace. It really amazes me that these delicate amalgamations of nostalgia and fine craft work tell a story about our rich textile heritage.
I feel very happy to wear these heritage collections of saris that bring in an element of elegance and history with them. My love for saris runs deep within me as I studied textile and fashion before joining the culinary school. I feel this is holistic as I love art and craft and totally identify with India’s rich craft and textile traditions.
That’s why, it felt very special to wear saris from the Amrakadamb collection as it gives the feels of an heirloom piece. It also tells a story woven over 600 hours by the weavers with intricate Kinkhaab weave from Benaras.
What are your favourite family heirloom pieces?
I love old textile designs, I am a bit partial to shawls from Kashmir and the beautiful Jamdani saris. I am all for our timeless woven pieces that tell so many stories and carry so many memories as we share among generations.
How do you think can we create awareness about India’s rich textile heritage among the younger generation?
I think making them aware of our textile heritage is very important. When we know its value and all that has gone into creating it, then we also learn to appreciate it. Recently, I got a chance to see a dorukha dupatta and I bought it. I did so because I valued it so much.
It’s essential to create awareness about our textile roots in our younger generation.
Interview by Deepika Sahu for Studio Virtues.
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