Indian households are increasingly swapping Teflon-coated pans and conventional non-stick cookware for cast iron, ceramic and toxin-free alternatives, creating a fast-growing opportunity for direct-to-consumer kitchenware start-ups and investors betting on the premiumisation of Indian kitchens.
Start-ups such as Cumin Co. and Ember Cookware are emerging as early beneficiaries of the trend, as consumers become more conscious about chemical coatings, microplastics and long-term cookware safety.
Founded in 2024, Cumin Co., which focuses on enamel cast iron cookware, has already raised $6.52 million across two funding rounds from Fireside Ventures and Alteria Capital. The company said it is on track to hit ₹100 crore annual recurring revenue (ARR) by the end of the year.
“People are becoming far more conscious about the materials used in everyday cookware, and that awareness is translating into meaningful purchase intent across categories like enamel cast iron,” said Niharika Joshi and Udit Lekhi.
First-time buyers
The founders said a large share of their customers are first-time buyers of healthier cookware alternatives, typically transitioning away from traditional non-stick and aluminium cookware. They added that awareness around synthetic coatings and chemical leaching has grown sharply, particularly among younger consumers setting up modern kitchens.
“The conversation has evolved from just ‘what we eat’ to ‘how we cook,’ and that’s a meaningful behavioural shift,” Joshi and Lekhi said.
The start-up has seen strong traction for products such as Dutch ovens, kadais and tawas, while repeat purchase rates have climbed as consumers gradually replace larger portions of their kitchens with toxin-free cookware. While metro cities remain key markets, the company said demand from tier-2 and tier-3 cities is also accelerating despite the category’s premium pricing.
The shift is also drawing investor interest into what was once considered a niche wellness category. Industry executives say cookware is increasingly being viewed through the lens of health, lifestyle and design rather than pure utility.
“Over the last few years, we have seen a decisive consumer shift toward healthier and more conscious living, and that mindset is now strongly influencing purchase decisions within the kitchen and cookware category as well,” said Archana Jahagirdar.
“Indian consumers today are moving beyond functional products and actively seeking toxin-free, durable, and thoughtfully designed cookware that aligns with their lifestyle aspirations,” she added.
Another start-up riding the trend is Ember Cookware, founded by Siddharth Gadodia and Himanshi Tandon. The company recently raised $3.2 million in funding and is targeting ₹30 crore ARR by March 2026, with plans to scale to ₹100 crore ARR by March 2027.
Ember currently sells 15 products across ceramic and cast-iron cookware categories and derives nearly 50-60% of its revenues from its direct-to-consumer website, with the remaining coming from marketplaces such as Amazon. About a quarter of its sales now come from tier-2 and tier-3 markets.
“A lot of our growth will come from category expansion and continuous innovation. We spend significant time in material science and product testing so that the products work harder in the kitchen and make cooking easier for consumers,” said Himanshi Tandon.
The company is deploying part of its fresh capital toward research and development through its Ember Innovation Lab, where product development is being shaped alongside celebrity chef and investor Saransh Goila.
‘Ember kitchen’
“We are building what we call the ‘Ember kitchen’—an ecosystem of fewer but better products that solve everyday cooking problems and make kitchens healthier,” Tandon added.
With India’s cookware market projected to reach $13.57 billion by 2035, startups and investors alike are betting that healthier kitchens could become one of the next large consumer categories to emerge from the country’s premiumisation wave.
Published on May 11, 2026