Homegrown women’s wear brand Uptownie, which initiated operations in 2015 with an initial investment of INR 80 lakh, is targeting a revenue of INR 60 crore by the end of this fiscal year, as stated by Shivani Agarwal, co-founder and CMO of Uptownie.
The self-funded brand, aiming to achieve an 18 percent EBITDA this fiscal year, mirroring the previous year’s performance, boasts a retention rate of 30 percent. It concluded the last fiscal year with a total of INR 30 crore.
At present, it maintains a presence on 11 marketplaces and operates a direct-to-consumer (D2C) website. There are plans to establish an offline presence in the fiscal year 2024-2025.
The women’s wear brand currently records an average order value of INR 1,800, with intentions to raise it to INR 2,000, while the customer acquisition cost (CAC) ranges between INR 500 and INR 600.
“At present, 70 per cent of our revenue is contributed by marketplaces and the remaining 30 per cent comes from the D2C channel, however, this financial year, we are aiming 45 per cent of our revenue from the marketplaces and the remaining 55 per cent from our D2C as our D2C channel has grown 6x since the last year,” she stated.
“Next year, we are planning to open shop-in-shops at large format stores like Central, Shoppers Stop, and Lifestyle. And towards the end of next year, we plan to open our EBOs,” she further added.
The brand intends to establish Exclusive Brand Outlets (EBOs) in cities such as Kolkata, Bengaluru, Guwahati, and Mumbai. The forthcoming mall-based stores are anticipated to cover an area ranging from 500 to 600 sq.ft.
To support its offline expansion strategy, the brand is preparing to secure INR 25 crore at a valuation of INR 250 crore, involving a 10 percent equity dilution.
Next year, the brand is set to expand its offerings by entering into the plus-size category.
“For FY25, we are aiming for INR 100 crore and if we raise the funds, then it can reach up to INR 130 crore,” she stated.
After a prosperous festival season for numerous e-commerce firms, companies are now eager to capitalize on the growing interest of Indian consumers in retail therapy.
Myntra and Ajio, prominent fashion platforms, have introduced the ‘End Of Reason Sale’ and ‘Big Bold Sale,’ presenting discounted prices on clothing and various fashion accessories. In India, the initial week of December marks the conclusion of the festival season, typically commencing in October and concluding by mid-November.
Nevertheless, businesses persist in providing products at reduced prices through sales, with some choosing to do so during Black Friday and Cyber Monday.
These sales serve as a crucial gauge of consumption health, constituting approximately 60 percent of India’s gross domestic product. Companies are also optimistic about capitalizing on the onset of the wedding season in many parts of India to sustain the momentum in consumption.
The Confederation of All India Traders projects that the total sales from November 23 to December 15 will amount to approximately INR 4.25 lakh crore ($51 billion).
Myntra anticipates approximately one million new customers to participate in the 19th edition of EORS. Meanwhile, Ajio’s Big Bold Sale, commencing on December 7, witnessed a 40 percent surge in orders during the early access phase compared to regular business.
Festival season was termed a success by many e-commerce players. “A very large middle class is expanding as we speak. We are seeing that increasing disposable incomes are leading to customers showing very strong preference to premiumise. This is happening in multiple categories,” said Saurabh Srivastava, vice president, Amazon India in October, ahead of the shopping season.
Amazon reported that 80 percent of its customer base hailed from tier 2-3 cities, asserting that this marked the largest ‘Great Indian Festival’ in the company’s history.
“The festive season is expected to be followed by a robust wedding period, both of which combined should support near-term growth,” Teresa John, an economist at Nirmal Bang Institutional Equities Pvt, had said late October. “Easy availability of credit and expectations of cooling inflation should also aid a gradual recovery in discretionary spending particularly in the mass market.”
Mumbai-based health snack brand Epigamia has appointed Rahul Jain, its co-founder and chief operating officer, as the new chief executive officer.
He takes over from Rohan Mirchandani, the fellow co-founder who has transitioned into the position of executive chairman.
Ankur Goel, an original member of Epigamia responsible for managing the company’s supply chain and business intelligence functions, has been promoted to the position of Chief Operating Officer (COO).
In his newfound position, Jain will lead the company’s overarching business initiatives, crafting a distinctive proposition within the FMCG space. Epigamia stated in a press release that he will be responsible for formulating strategies to maintain competitiveness, identifying fresh opportunities, and promoting innovation.
A graduate of IIT-Bombay and the Indian School of Business-Hyderabad, Jain initiated his career in finance with Deutsche Bank’s Credit Structuring team. Following his MBA, he introduced Doctor Moo, an organic milk brand, and later collaborated with Mirchandani to establish Epigamia.
In the past year, Epigamia has implemented strategic measures to enhance its cost structure efficiency across various functions, resulting in notably improved profit margins, as stated by the company.
The brand is present at over 20,000 touchpoints across 30 towns. Additionally, its products are accessible through major retail chains like DMart, Reliance, Nature’s Basket, and More, as well as on e-commerce platforms including Big Basket, Swiggy Instamart, Amazon, Zepto, and BlinkIt.
In the nine months leading up to September, ITC Ltd has emerged as the leading fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) manufacturer in the food sector based on domestic sales, surpassing competitors such as Adani Wilmar, Britannia, Parle Products, and others. This information is according to the most recent data from market tracker NielsenIQ, as disclosed by three industry executives.
During the specified period, ITC achieved food FMCG sales amounting to INR 17,100 crore, surpassing competitors such as Britannia with INR 16,700 crore, Adani Wilmar with INR 15,900 crore, Parle Products with INR 14,800 crore, Mondelez with INR 13,800 crore, and Hindustan Unilever Ltd (HUL) with INR 12,200 crore, as indicated by NielsenIQ data.
In comparison to the same period last year, ITC has risen from the fourth position, where Adani Wilmar held the lead. Adani Wilmar recorded sales of INR 16,100 crore in the January-September period last year, while Britannia reached INR 14,900 crore, Parle at INR 14,800 crore, ITC at INR 13,900 crore, and Mondelez at INR 12,400 crore, according to NielsenIQ data.
According to industry executives, one of the primary factors enabling ITC to surpass Adani Wilmar was the significant decline in edible oil prices.
This has influenced the earnings of the nation’s leading edible oil company during the nine-month duration. In September, edible oil prices were consistently below $1,000 per tonne, a notable decrease from the peak of $2,000 per tonne observed in April-May 2022. Concurrently, ITC benefited from a rise in atta prices. The company’s packaged atta, marketed under the Aashirvaad brand, stands as the primary revenue generator for its food business.
Additionally, the majority of items within its extensive product range are experiencing growth. The company consistently introduces over 100 new food FMCG products annually.
Hemant Malik, the Executive Director of ITC Ltd, stated that every product category within the company’s food business has contributed to growth this fiscal year.
Under the purview of Malik, who manages ITC’s foods business, the portfolio encompasses rapidly expanding categories like biscuits, witnessing an 11% growth in the current calendar year, and salty snacks, with the market experiencing a growth exceeding 20%.
“The current trends along with the increase in atta prices have contributed to boosting revenue growth,” he said.
Despite the government’s ongoing prohibition on wheat exports, the retail inflation for wheat this year has fluctuated between 5% and 9%.
Angshu Mallick, CEO of Adani Wilmar, attributed the decline in sales solely to the decrease in edible oil prices.
According to a spokesperson from NielsenIQ, the company does not authenticate, validate, or furnish details on company-specific data, adhering to the confidentiality clauses outlined in their client agreements.
Adani Wilmar has experienced a decline in revenue due to the decrease in edible oil prices, but there has been an increase in volume sales.
In the first half (April-September) of the current fiscal year, the company recorded a 18% year-on-year growth in volume, accompanied by a 13% decline in sales revenue. According to Adani Wilmar’s recent quarterly earnings release, profitability was adversely impacted by the decrease in edible oil prices.
The success in the foods business is pivotal for ITC as it pursues its ambition to become the country’s leading non-cigarette FMCG company and mitigate exposure to taxation uncertainties in the cigarette industry. Contributing over 82% to its non-cigarette FMCG sales, the foods business stands as a profitable cornerstone of ITC’s diversified portfolio.
According to NielsenIQ data, snacks, food products, and packaged groceries emerge as pivotal segments propelling the growth of the entire food FMCG category in the country. Within the food segment, Nestle leads in modern trade contribution at 18.8%, followed by HUL at 15.9%, Mondelez at 14.2%, ITC at 12.2%, and Adani Wilmar at 11.3%.
Fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG)-centric BIA Brands has acquired Mumbai-based TrueKind, marking its initial venture into the skincare space.
Nevertheless, the financial terms of the deal were not disclosed by the company.
Through this acquisition, Hyderabad-and Dubai-based BIA Brands aims to launch a variety of skincare products and cosmetics, as well as curate offerings tailored for its youthful customer base.
Established in 2022 by Sudhakar Adapa and Anudeep Chappa, BIA operates as a ‘house of brands,’ dedicated to constructing and expanding various brands. The platform’s objective is to foster the development of global brands originating from India.
Earlier, BIA had acquired three companies in the food and beverage (F&B) domain, including the specialty coffee brand Brew & Bliss, the flavored nuts startup Nut-O-Licious, and the blends company La Kah Fay.
“It embodies our goal to enhance our international reach and introduce innovative products. We are setting the stage to build and foster truly global brands that originate from India, transcending geographical boundaries and consumer expectations,” said Adapa.
BIA recently appointed Karen Wilson Kumar, a former manager at Louis Vuitton and Ferragamo, as the Chief Executive Officer of its beauty and personal care (BPC) segment.
“Leading the BPC segment at BIA Brands is an opportunity of a lifetime. Our goal is to blend the rich legacy of TrueKind with innovative approaches to meet the evolving needs of our consumers, ensuring quality, efficacy, and sustainability in all our products,” Kumar said.
Meanwhile, TrueKind, founded by Keshav Biyani and Prabhu Karthikeyan in October 2021, is a skincare brand that emphasizes a range of products, asserting their commitment to being vegan and cruelty-free.
Biyani expressed his confidence in BIA and said that it will carry forward the commitment of TrueKind to offer effective skincare solutions. “TrueKind is poised for great success and growth under their stewardship,” he added.
FMCG-centric startups in India have been attracting attention from investors for a considerable period.
Lately, Unilever, a prominent FMCG company, supported the beauty and personal care brand WishCare with an investment of INR 20 Cr ($2.4 Mn) through its venture capital arm, Unilever Ventures. The startup plans to utilize the funds to enhance its research and development capabilities and intensify efforts in formulating high-efficacy products enriched with clinically tested ingredients.
Based on data, the market size of the beauty and personal care industry was $4 billion in 2022, and it is projected to achieve a 27% Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR), reaching $28 billion by the year 2030.
Japanese tech investor SoftBank’s SVF Growth is exploring the possibility of divesting another 1.1% stake in Zomato through a block deal worth $135 million.
According to several media sources, SVF Growth is anticipated to trade the shares at INR 120.5 each, representing a slight markdown compared to Zomato’s closing price of INR 121.8 on the BSE on Thursday (December 7).
At the end of the September 2023 quarter, SVF Growth (Singapore) Pte Ltd held a 2.17% stake in Zomato, comprising 18.71 crore shares. In October, the Japanese investor divested a 1.1% stake, equivalent to 9.36 crore shares, in the foodtech major.
Should the stake sale occur, it would signify SoftBank’s complete withdrawal from Zomato.
It is noteworthy that SoftBank has been consistently reducing its stake in publicly traded Indian tech companies over the past several months. In August of this year, SVF Growth divested a 1.15% stake, equivalent to 10 crore shares, in Zomato, thereby reducing its ownership in the company to 2.17%.
Conversely, SoftBank’s SVF Doorbell (Cayman) recently sold 2.5% of its stake in the logistics unicorn Delhivery for nearly INR 740 crore. The Japanese company is actively seeking exits from other publicly listed Indian startups in its portfolio, such as Paytm and PB Fintech.
In the meantime, several other global investment firms, including Alipay and Alibaba from China, have been making efforts to divest from the publicly listed companies in their India portfolio.
Last week, Alipay completed its exit from Zomato by divesting its entire 3.44% stake in the company through various block deals, totaling INR 3,336.7 crore. Notably, these shares were acquired by investors such as Morgan Stanley and Fidelity Investment.
Dunzo, the hyperlocal delivery platform grappling with a significant financial downturn, has allegedly been unable to disburse salaries to its employees for the month of November.
According to a Moneycontrol report, Dunzo is anticipating the receipt of the initial installment of capital from its investors to fulfill salary payments.
“We have got assurance from our investor that expected funds will be wired to us by early next week. We should be able to release the November salaries as soon as we receive it. With this infusion we should be able to manage salaries for the next couple of months till we close out the round of equity in January,” the startup reportedly told its employees.
Dunzo has a history of repeatedly falling behind schedule in disbursing employee salaries. Despite announcing plans to settle delayed June and July payments in November, it remains uncertain whether these payments have been successfully processed.
An email inquiry sent to Dunzo regarding the current status and outstanding salaries from previous months went unanswered.
At present, the startup supported by Reliance Retail has reduced its workforce by more than 30% and has witnessed departures at the managerial level.
Earlier, the cash-strapped company was reported to be exploring the possibility of raising $25 million to $30 million in funding.
“As this (the fresh funding) is based on external factors, we would recommend members to plan for a worst-case timeline of Dec 15, 2023,” Dunzo has now reportedly its employees. “We will continue to put our best efforts to find other alternatives as well. Regret the delay and request your continued support.”
In FY23, Dunzo witnessed a nearly fourfold increase in its losses, reaching INR 1,801 crore from INR 464 crore in the preceding fiscal year. Concurrently, the operating revenue surged by 317% year-on-year (YoY) to INR 226.6 crore.
India’s retail scene is undergoing a notable change as property developers launch malls exclusively focused on food. In these establishments, over 50% of the space is allocated to food outlets and entertainment areas. This shift underscores the increasing acknowledgment of the pivotal role played by food and beverages as the primary revenue drivers for malls.
Prestige, headquartered in Bengaluru, has recently inaugurated a 125,000 sq ft mall exclusively featuring restaurants and cinemas. Additionally, the company is in the planning stages for a larger 500,000 sq ft mall following a similar concept. Meanwhile, Omaxe Group from Delhi is in the process of developing a mall in Chandni Chowk, New Delhi, with 70% of the space reserved for restaurants. Signature Global, another prominent developer, already operates a food-only mall in Ghaziabad.
Phoenix, headquartered in Mumbai, and DLF, based in New Delhi, are both expanding the space dedicated to restaurants in their existing properties and upcoming projects. This decision stems from the sustained rise in customer foot traffic and revenue growth observed in eateries following the post-pandemic period.
“We have taken a lot of feedback from the operators of our first food-only mall, and we are using that for better experience in the second mall, which will be bigger. Eating out has emerged as the biggest trend post Covid and that has made us confident to do a bigger mall where every restaurant will have an outdoor space,” said Muhammad Ali, CEO, Forum Malls of Prestige group.
Until approximately three years ago, food and beverage outlets occupied around 10% of the retail space in malls. However, this percentage has now increased to 20%. Mall operators express their readiness to allocate even more space to eateries in response to this growing trend.
“Food is big business, and it becomes unbeatable when paired with the right ambience. That’s precisely what we have done at Dawatpur, the Omaxe Chowk food court,” said Mohit Goel, managing director, Omaxe Group.
Omaxe Chowk, located in Chandni Chowk, offers a leasable area of 375,000 square feet, with a specific allocation of 100,000 square feet dedicated to food and beverage outlets.
On Wednesday, McDonald’s announced an aggressive expansion roadmap, targeting 50,000 restaurants worldwide by 2027. The chain also shared plans to introduce CosMc’s, a new network of small-format shops with a focus on cold beverages.
The fast-food giant, which had 40,275 restaurants at the end of 2022, aims to rapidly expand its network of flagship locations by about one-quarter, marking the speediest expansion in the brand’s history.
Regarding CosMc’s, a concept alluded to by McDonald’s executives in July, the company intends to open its first store in Chicago in 2024, followed by nine additional locations in Texas. This initiative is reminiscent of an animated orange character with six arms featured in McDonald’s marketing from 1986 to 1992.
According to the company’s website, CosMc’s is characterized as being “inspired by nostalgia” and features a menu that includes beverages like S’mores Cold Brew and Sour Tango Lemonade, as well as sandwiches and baked goods.
Speciality beverages and coffee are a fast-growing $100 billion category and “a space that we believe we have the right to win,” Chief Executive Chris Kempczinski said at an investor day.
McDonald’s, having rapidly expanded during mid-century America, currently holds the top position as the largest chain in the fast-food industry, slightly surpassing Starbucks and Subway, both prominent global brands.
To facilitate the expansion, the company intends to allocate approximately USD 2.5 billion in capital expenditures in 2024, with additional annual increments ranging from USD 300 million to USD 500 million until 2027.
Manu Steijaert, Chief Customer Officer, mentioned that the current expansion is advancing at a much faster pace compared to the previous increase from 30,000 to 40,000 restaurants, which spanned over 18 years.
“Hopefully you can feel the confidence we have in McDonald’s’ development potential over the next four years and beyond,” Steijaert said.
Recent sales growth has been driven by new offerings, including the well-received “McCrispy” chicken sandwich. The chain has additionally experienced increased online orders in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, and its reputation for affordability has helped maintain customer traffic amid a period of heightened inflation.
The chain forecasted a nearly two percent increase in revenue for the year 2024.
Juju, Pune’s first tequila bar, is set to transport the city to a Mexican adventure. Tucked into the lively heart of Kalyani Nagar, Juju’s design seamlessly combines a glasshouse aesthetic with thoughtfully curated tables and high chairs, creating a snug atmosphere.
The highlight, a decor inspired by cacti, gracefully descends from above, swaying with captivating elegance. Its soft glow, harmonizing with ambient lighting, creates an intimate and romantic scene. The seating layout includes a series of large windows offering a charming view of Pune’s leafy streets. A central communal table promotes spontaneous interactions, nurturing engaging conversations and unexpected friendships.
Karan Khilnani, co-founder of Elephant & Co, said, “Juju is the natural extension we envisioned as a quaint tequila bar experience that drinks, dines, and dances with a modern Mexican soul. Juju promises to be a 36-seater cozy and intimate bar that provides an unparalleled dining and drinking experience.”
Chef partner Hanoze Shroff emphasises their commitment to seasonality, stating, “We have deliberately kept the menu small and super seasonal. A majority of ingredients remain authentically Mexican, but I have also introduced Indian elements that blend well with the Mexican ethic.”
We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it.
