Hector Beverages, the parent company of popular beverage brand Paper Boat, has secured $50.1 million from Lathe Investment Pte Ltd, which is wholly owned by Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund GIC.
According to regulatory filings, GIC will hold a 25% stake in Gurugram-based Hector Beverages. Earlier last week, Mint reported that GIC was looking to invest in Paper Boat at a valuation of $250 million to $280 million.
Including current fundraising, Paper Boat has raised INR 448 Mn in equity funding and INR 10 Mn in debt funding to date.
Founded in 2010 by former Coca-Cola executives Neeraj Kakkar and Niraj Biyani, Hector Beverages operates the F&B brand Paper Boat, which sells fruit drinks in Indian flavours such as Aam Panna (raw mango), Jaljeera (spicy, spicy lemonade) and others. Apart from this, it also sells dry fruits and healthy snacks including chikki and aam papad.
Presently, Paper Boat has a presence in metro cities along with Tier-2 and 3 cities in India. In 2020, Paper Boat raised INR 28 Cr from Sofina Ventures, A91 Emerging Fund I, SCI Growth Investment II and Catamaran Ventures.
The brand also collected 20 Cr from Advent Management and A91 Emerging Fund and INR 10 Cr debt funding from Trifecta.
In 2018, the Tata Group was said to be in talks with Paper Boat’s parent company to buy the startup. However, the agreement did not materialize and later the founder of Paper Boat also denied the development.
In the financial year 2021-22, Paper Boat’s revenue increased to INR 243 Cr from the 231 Cr earned in the previous fiscal year. Meanwhile, its consolidated losses narrowed to INR 64 cr in FY21, down from losses of INR 100 cr in the corresponding period, according to Tofer.
It faces competition from Lahori and Raw Pressery brands in the Indian food and beverage (F&B) market. The F&B industry in the country is expected to become a $156.25 billion market by 2026.