The Covid-19 pandemic has shifted the human consumption patterns towards a more wholesome and mindful way of living. The first of its kind, Zero Percent Shop, is a platform for consumers seeking to adopt a mindful lifestyle. It is a division of Third Culture Group, a privately-owned company based in Ylitorno in Finnish Lapland. Established in 2007, the group also operates Veen Water, the natural mineral water brand.

The vision behind Zero Percent Shop was to create a unique selection of curated food and beverage brands in the categories - 0% alcohol, 0% dairy, 0% sugar, 0% microplastic, 0% meat, 0% pesticides, and fine water to encourage the mindful consumption movement by building awareness and making zero-percent brands easily accessible to people willing to consume more responsibly.

Aman Gupta, founder, Zero Percent, and managing director, Veen, says, "2020 was our first year setting up Zero Percent. We initially started the brand in Finland, but are now growing it from our base in Germany, near Munich, and additionally in India and the UAE."

Health is a priority

Gupta understands that today's consumer is more inclined towards healthy options to boost immunity. He adds, "Much like today's consumers, my interest and level of involvement in mindful lifestyle has been growing year on year over the past 4 to 5 years."

According to Gupta, the category development came from making some changes in his consumption habits. He explains, "I stopped consuming dairy products and reduced my sugar intake. Moreover, a month-long alcohol detox led me to stop drinking alcohol completely. At that point, I started looking for alternatives to fulfill my cravings and to fulfill the gap of not having an adult drink while socializing. This made me discover the emergence of the Zero Alcohol category."

While he was making changes in his consumption habits, he realized that there was no one-stop-shop for these zero percent categories, which led to setting up Zero Percent. He collaborated with small and medium-sized producers that are doing innovative things in these categories to build its product portfolio. "We are working with brands and producers whom we know personally. All the brands follow a similar philosophy as our's in terms of transparency, clean label approach and understanding consumer's needs."

Gupta said, initially, they started focusing on the 0% alcohol category and built a portfolio that covers all elements from spirits to wines, sparkling wines to beer and cider, all in 0%. Similarly, they created an entire offering in 0% dairy from almond milk to oat milk, walnut milk, pea milk, and cashew nut milk. Zero Percent Shop works on developing other categories as well.

"In India, we have started with introducing the 0% alcohol category. Our first organic product for India is Noughty - a 100% vegan, organic, halal-certified sparkling Chardonnay with 0% alcohol content. This is made in Germany, and Zero Percent will represent the brand exclusively in India," adds Gupta.

Coast Beer is the first craft non-alcohol beer which the Zero Percent Shop has brought to India. "Coast is all about taste, quality, and creativity. Using the finest ingredients, innovative yeast cultures, and modern brewing techniques create beers that are always alcohol-free, vegan-friendly, and never compromise on taste."

According to Gupta, the Zero percent categories are emerging categories in India like Europe and the US. The Covid 19 has only made the categories grow faster as more and more consumers are considering their health, community, and the planet. He adds, "We want to make it easier for consumers to drink less alcohol and dairy products, eat less meat and sugar, eat more organic in order to consume healthier and be happier."

Zero Percent is currently operational in Germany, Finland, Latvia, UAE, and India. It has production facilities in Finnish Lapland and the Kingdom of Bhutan, where it produces products like Veen Water and Nordic mixers. "The brand has plans to expand into EU markets in the next three years. We plan to open our own Zero Percent Shops in key markets. We are planning to open the first store in Germany in 2021," he concludes.