Sandeep Balasubramanian, an engineering and management graduate, switched track from a corporate career working with multinational brands like Red Bull and Pernod Ricard, to set up Clipper Foods India Pvt. Ltd. with his wife in 2017. The company currently operates Hashi and Hashi Izakaya, award-winning Japanese-forward Asian restaurants in Hyderabad, with plans to foray into other formats and cuisines in the near future.