DAH! Looks to Lakshmi to Increase Education Efforts [Updated]

After partnering with author and television host Padma Lakshmi last fall, yogurt and lassi maker DAH! is preparing to put the culinary expert front and center next month as it begins a new marketing push built around consumer education.

Founded in 2006 by Indian expat JD Sethi and Ajeet Burns, the Massachusetts-based brand produces a line of slow-cultured dairy drinkable smoothies and yogurt cups, as well as plant-based almond yogurts, which are sold in coolers nationwide in retailers such as Whole Foods, Sprouts, Wegmans, Bristol Farms and Kroger, among others.

The partnership with Lakshmi came as DAH! repositions its offerings to emphasize the company’s Indian roots, changing the pronunciation of its name to “Dah-ee” with the exclamation point standing in for an “I.” The company previously changed its name from Dahlicious to Dah! in 2019, but had used the pronunciation dahh.

Dahi means “yogurt” in Hindi and according to CEO Pamela Goldberg, who joined the company in 2020, Lakshmi encouraged Dahlicious to lean further into its cultural heritage. However, the brand is continuing to use the term “yogurt smoothie” instead of the original “lassi” descriptor it used in order to better communicate usage occasions.

Beyond the new pronunciation, DAH! also updated its bottle shape this winter, moving to arounder 32 oz. multi-serve bottle, with the packaging continuing to emphasize the brand’s probiotic content, as gut health will be an important part of the company’s messaging moving forward.

“As we started working with Padma we realized there was a real opportunity to own and respect our Indian heritage,” Goldberg said. “We have the ability to deliver amazing gut health to the consumer while at the same time having such a wonderful taste experience from the texture.”

The emphasis on gut health and probiotics comes as consumers increasingly seek out functional food and drinks; according to a 2021 Mintel report, three in five American adults say they try to eat foods that support a healthy microbiome.

Lakshmi, known as the long serving host of food competition reality series Top Chef, joined DAH! in November 2021 as a brand partner and board advisor. While the relationship between the two has been public since the fall – the company released a Tomato with Mixed Berries flavor inspired by Lakshmi’s latest children’s book Tomatoes for Neela – Lakshmi will play a more public-facing role in promoting the brand starting next month. The company is also preparing to launch a second flavor created in partnership with Lakshmi this summer.

“I’m excited to be able to share this with the American public because it may be something new for them, and it is a product I truly enjoy,” Lakshmi said in a statement. “The entire probiotic-rich line features flavorful yogurts authentic to the culinary style of India.”

In particular, Goldberg said Lakshmi will play a key role in educating consumers about lassi, which many U.S. consumers encounter rarely outside of Indian restaurants. The campaign will be tailored in part around Lakshmi’s credentials as a food expert and will showcase globally-inspired recipes that feature DAH!’s flavored lassis as an ingredient, such as a Plain Lassi Pumpkin Soup and Vanilla Lassi Peppermint Graham Crackers.

Beyond serving as a brand ambassador Lakshmi is also playing a key role in advising on business strategy as well, Goldberg added.

“We’ve talked about big opportunities and will be, in the next one-to-two years, focusing our time and energy together on expanding distribution for the brand,” she said. “It is critical for [us to have] a platform to be able to be leveraged to reach the most people, so that they can buy the product.”

DAH! is widely available in the Northeast, and Goldberg said the company is now looking to expand in mass and club retailers, where it was previously sold, along with national and regional grocery and natural channel chains.

Beyond the lassi products, DAH! is also continuing to focus on its plant-based offerings, which currently includes an almond yogurt line. DAH! previously discontinued a plant-based cashew lassi and yogurt line, which launched in 2017. A PR spokesperson for the company noted that the company is currently weighing the future of the yogurt cup line as it seeks to focus more on beverage, but Goldberg said growing its plant-based offerings across both lines will also be a key focus as the brand aims to meet “all consumers’ needs.”

Editor’s Note: A previous version of this story misstated the timing of and details of the current packaging changes.