Entrepreneur Bhagyashree Dholepatil tells Shalaka Nalawade about her new innovative venture, Fruitilicious, a fruit gifting concept

Achocolate covered apple wedge is not something that you will find easily in your neighbourhood gourmet store. If you want a bite of this ambrosial dessert, head to Fruitilicious, the new store in town offering some amazingly healthy fruit delights with some delicious chocolate coating and some crunchy nuts and sugar crystals toppings. Entrepreneur Bhagyashree Dholepatil, who started the Fruitilicious franchise in Pune two months ago, shares details about the store and its USPs like fruit bouquets and fruit baskets, which make great gifting options.

get the fruits rolling

The fruit bouquets, which have freshly cut, succulent fruits covered in delicious Belgian chocolate, look really tempting. “The idea of gifting fruit bouquets is relatively new here, but is catching on. When we introduced our friends to this concept, they appreciated this novel gifting idea,” informs Dholepatil. An appealing edible bouquet is any day preferable!

Sharing how the idea of the franchise took off, she says, “My husband had ordered a fruit bouquet from Fruitilicious’ Mumbai store and I loved the gift. The bouquet looked beautiful with all those glistening fruits, but more importantly, they had retained their freshness, flavour and crispness for more than 24 hours.”

Dholepatil wanted others to enjoy this experience as well. So, she decided to open a franchise of Fruitilicious in Pune. “This store gives me an opportunity to learn more about the craft. Besides, I get to meet a lot of people and I thoroughly enjoy the interactions,” says Dholepatil who is pursuing her MBA after having completed her BCA.

Retaining the freshness

At the fruit factory, colours and textures come together as Fruitilicious’ trained chefs work dexterously on their creations. From lime green juicy kiwi pieces to pretty pineapple yellow daisies to dark chocolate-covered strawberries to Granny Smith green apples dipped in white chocolate, the fruit basket has an assortment of fruits to appeal to all kinds of tastes and likings.
“All our fruit bouquets and baskets are custom-made. Once a customer calls on us, we place the order for the fruits with our vendor who stocks only fresh fruits. After we receive the consignment, our chefs start working on the bouquet,” says Dholepatil.

Giving us more details about how the flavour and crispness of the fruit are retained, she elaborates, “After cutting apple wedges, they are immediately dipped in chocolate. This process cuts off the chemical reaction which creates oxidation, thus preventing fruit darkening or discolouration. The bouquet is then wrapped in transparent plastic, which further cuts off contact with oxygen, to help the fruits stay fresh.” To elongate its freshness, refrigerate the bouquet. “And remember to consume it within two days as the fruits starts losing their juices after that,” she adds.

Something special!

Fruitilicious also has some small, interesting and fun gifting options for kids. “For example, at a birthday party we made marshmallows dipped in chocolate and topped them with chopped almonds and pistachios and edible silver sugar balls. Children just loved our sweets,” Dholepatil informs.

Another special order was making a strawberry bouquet for a client’s 50th birthday. “Some strawberries were dipped in white chocolate, some in dark and some had no coating to make the bouquet more colourful and lively. We then arranged the strawberries in such a manner that they looked like the number 50. Our effort was well appreciated and we clinched many more orders,” says Dholepatil and smiles.

So, if you are looking for some innovative options in desserts, you know where to head!