Indian-Origin Entrepreneur Builds $2.8 Million Ice Cream Empire With Cardamom and Saffron Flavors

Indian-origin entrepreneur Pooja Bavishi has emerged as a successful business figure in the American food industry after building her ice cream company, Malai, into a business generating $2.8 million in annual revenue. Founded in 2015, the brand has gained recognition for introducing Indian-inspired flavors into the mainstream US dessert market. The company currently operates four brick-and-mortar stores across New York, Philadelphia, and Washington, DC, while also expanding through wholesale and e-commerce operations.

Bavishi said the idea behind Malai was to move beyond conventional ice cream flavors and introduce ingredients deeply rooted in Indian cuisine, such as cardamom, saffron, rose, and nutmeg. Speaking to CNBC Make It, she explained that these flavors are familiar to millions worldwide and deserve a place in the broader American culinary landscape. Company records reviewed by the publication reportedly showed that Malai earned $2.8 million in total sales during 2025 and remained profitable in both 2024 and 2025.

Before entering the food business, Bavishi pursued studies in urban planning at the London School of Economics and later worked as a civil rights project coordinator at the Equal Rights Center. Her transition into entrepreneurship began unexpectedly during a dinner gathering with friends, where she served homemade ginger-star anise ice cream. The positive response to the dessert encouraged her to explore the concept further and eventually develop it into a commercial venture.

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Bavishi said she initially focused heavily on understanding consumer preferences before scaling the business. She experimented with multiple flavor combinations and carefully studied customer behavior to identify what would resonate in the market. According to her, gaining a clear understanding of her target audience was essential before turning the idea into a sustainable business model. She emphasized that validating the concept early helped ensure the brand’s long-term viability.

The entrepreneur later gained broader media attention after one of her products received praise from a food writer at The New York Times, who was also among her customers. The exposure significantly boosted awareness of the brand and helped accelerate expansion efforts. Bavishi subsequently raised a modest amount of funding from friends and family in 2017, which she used to launch pop-up stores and temporary food hall locations across New York City before opening permanent outlets.

Reflecting on the success of Malai, Bavishi said she takes pride in bringing Indian flavors into mainstream American food culture. She stressed that these tastes are not “experimental” but are part of daily life for billions of people around the world. Her journey has increasingly been viewed as an example of how immigrant entrepreneurs are reshaping the American culinary industry by introducing culturally rooted products to wider audiences while building commercially successful businesses.

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