The Angliss Alum making the world a better place one dessert at a time
From a very young age, Pushkar Gogia would tag along with his mother, a hotelier, to meet top chefs, directors and general managers in the hospitality industry. Their passion for the experience industry inspired Puskar and led him to pursue a qualification at William Angliss Institute.
"Through research, I realised that William Angliss Institute was the leader when it comes to hospitality. It was an easy decision to make," said Pushkar.
After Pushkar completed his Certificate III in Hospitality in 2001, he began his hospitality career. However, in 2015 Pushkar decided it was time to regroup - he loved hospitality but he wanted more.
Pushkar took a year-long sabbatical where he spent most of his time in an Ashram. It was a very introspective period of his life. Through his time at the Ashram, Pushkar began a journey into veganism and decided to work in an environment where monetary success wasn’t his only goal. Pushkar was looking for purpose, and Mahadeva's Kitchen was his answer.
To directly translate, Mahadeva's Kitchen means God's Kitchen. Pushkar wanted to create a scalable line of cruelty-free and plant-based desserts that are so delicious that people would choose Mahadeva products above non-vegan desserts.
"Recipe development was very challenging, but we were up to the task. We studied in detail the properties and effect of each alternative ingredient like ground flaxseed. We tried them all in different combinations, which required a lot of patience. We also reached out to family and friends who we thought could help and consulted with some vegan desserts pioneers from around the world.”
Experimenting with recipes and flavour combinations is one of Pushkar's passions. During his time at Angliss, he always looked forward to his Wine Studies class, where students learned about different flavours and the subtle notes a wine carries. The skills Pushkar gained in this class, he still uses in his business today.
"To achieve a perfect balance, so many different flavours need to work in synergy. I'm always fascinated by this and try to incorporate this learning into all of my recipe development. For example, our Rich Chocolate Ganache has subtle tones of pomegranate and espresso and a lingering tart flavour as a final note to the cake, which overall elevates the experience."
It's no secret that a lot of Angliss alumni have an entrepreneurial streak in them. We see this in Jaen Jumah, Event's by Shan, Moke Dining and KittyBakes (you can learn more about our alumni businesses here). We asked Pushkar what advice he can give to current students who are thinking about creating their own business in the future. Here are Pushkar's top tips:
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Find a gap and look for something scalable. The gap we found was not just a lack of vegan treats but a lack of delicious premium quality desserts which were also plant-based.
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Take action, don't just contemplate. Generally, if I find myself not taking action, it's because something is overwhelming me. To get over this, you can pick the easiest task to complete first. Once you get the ball rolling, you'll pick up momentum and continue with your work.
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Lastly, put time, life and energy into your business. It will grow your business and set the tone of what you want to create.
To see more of Mahadeva's Kitchen, you can explore their Instagram or order one of their delicious cakes from their website.
