Sri Maruthi Soda Factory

Sri Maruthi Soda Factory is located in Hadikere, right near the bus stand. We are in the Tarikere area of the Chikmagalur district. Being near the post office and the bus stand means there is always someone passing by or poking their head in to see what we are doing. Our factory is a small operation. We spend the morning filling up bottles and the afternoon delivering them to the local shops around the tehsil. It’s a bit of a manual process, and our hands are usually wet from the washing and filling cycles. We don't have any high-tech machinery; it’s mostly the same equipment we’ve used for years. It works well enough for what we need to get through the day. The building is a bit old and has high ceilings to keep the heat out during the summer months. We don't have a marketing plan or any big dreams of being a national brand. We just want to provide soda to the people in our village and the surrounding areas. Sometimes the power goes out, and we have to stop everything, which gives us a chance to sit outside on the steps and chat with the people waiting for the bus. It’s a slow and steady kind of business. We know almost everyone who buys from us by their first name. It’s a simple life out here in Chikmagalur, and we like it that way. We just keep the bottles moving.