Allied Blenders and Distillers Limited (ABD) is elevating its presence in the Prestige and above segments of the whisky market by introducing distinctive offerings rooted in key consumer insights. In pursuit of this goal, ABD has creatively transformed the 180ml SKU, commonly referred to as the ‘quarter,’ into the chic and stylish packaging of ‘Hippy.’
“Constantly innovating is one of ABD’s core values. The Hippy is a great example of this core value brought alive on the back of consumer-centric thinking. It is an offering that allows for widening of the occasions where consumers can engage with our brand on account of its style quotient and mobile form factor,” shared Alok Gupta, Managing Director, ABD.
The company was a pioneer in making this packaging format available to semi-premium whisky consumers with Sterling Reserve Whisky. The Hippy offers a modern twist on the traditional ‘quarter’ and appeals to individuals of all age groups.
Currently, it is available in Maharashtra, West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh, Assam, Daman, and Tripura.
“For long, alcobev consumers have suffered from the ‘brown-bag syndrome’ where they would be hesitant to be seen with their humble ‘quarter’ or ‘pau-a’. The Hippy allows consumers to break free of inhibitions and flaunt their Sterling Reserve BX Whisky,” added Bikram Basu, Chief Strategy and Marketing Officer, ABD.
On Wednesday, Patanjali Foods announced a profit for the second quarter that more than doubled. This surge was driven by a decline in expenses, which outpaced the decrease in revenue caused by lower edible oil prices.
In the quarter ending on September 30, the profit of Ruchi Gold, the oil maker, increased to 2.55 billion Indian rupees ($30.63 million), up from 1.12 billion rupees the previous year.
Patanjali experienced a reduction of over 23% in raw material costs, contributing to a decline of over 10% in total expenses, which amounted to 75.11 billion rupees.
While the decrease in expenditures played a role, it managed to counterbalance an 8% decline in Patanjali’s revenue from operations, which amounted to 78.22 billion rupees. The revenue from edible oils, constituting 69% of its total revenue in the quarter, saw a drop of over 13%.
The surge in India’s edible oil imports and the impact of lower global oil prices have placed a burden on edible oil companies. Just last week, Adani Wilmar, a major player in the industry, reported a loss for the quarter.
The company’s food business, responsible for producing Patanjali-branded biscuits and the “Nutrela” range of products spanning from wheat flour to honey, witnessed a growth of approximately 5.5% in revenue.
In a statement, CEO Sanjeev Asthana of Patanjali Foods expressed optimism, anticipating that the festival season and a rise in consumer spending will propel growth in the upcoming quarter.
During the initial two months of the July-September quarter, consumer companies struggled with subdued demand in rural areas, attributed to soaring inflation and delayed monsoons.
Nevertheless, a report from NielsenIQ revealed that a rebound occurred as food prices eased, and there was an improvement in rainfall during September.
Patanjali Foods’ shares concluded with a 1.15% increase before the results, contributing to a year-to-date surge of 22%.
On Wednesday, Instacart projected a fourth-quarter core profit exceeding Wall Street estimates in its first earnings report since going public in September. The 4% surge in its shares after the announcement was fueled by higher transaction and advertisement fees.
The grocery delivery company, which has seen its stock decline by over a third since its debut, also disclosed a $500 million share repurchase initiative.
Anticipating the adjusted EBITDA for the current quarter—a pivotal profitability metric—to fall within the range of $165 million to $175 million, the company contradicts analysts’ expectations of $155.6 million, as per LSEG data.
Formerly recognized as Maplebear, the company exceeded third-quarter revenue projections. This success was driven by increased delivery and service fees imposed on customers, along with the sale of advertising spaces—particularly sought after by packaged goods companies aiming to expand their reach to a broader customer base.
“We have significant competitive advantages over newer, smaller entrants into our space,” CEO Fidji Simo said in an interview with Reuters.
In the third quarter, Instacart’s gross transaction value (GTV), representing the value of products sold at displayed prices, increased by 6% compared to the previous year, reaching $7.49 billion. This exceeded the average analyst estimate of $7.46 billion.
During the quarter, there was a 4% growth in total orders. The total revenue also saw a 14% increase, reaching $764 million, surpassing the expected $736.9 million.
“The results were better than feared,” said CFRA Research analyst Arun Sundaram. “There were some concerns… that the GTV could be pressured given that grocery commerce adoption is slowing… but GTV grew.”
During the third quarter, Instacart reported a net loss of $2 billion, equivalent to $20.86 per share. This was mainly attributed to the stock-based compensation expenses incurred during its initial public offering.
For the full year 2023, Instacart envisions a mid-single-digit growth in GTV, surpassing analysts’ estimated 4.7% increase at $30.18 billion. Moreover, it anticipates achieving an adjusted EBITDA for the period that is three times higher than the $187 million recorded in 2022.
Just last week, competitor DoorDash also forecasted a positive outlook for fourth-quarter core profit.
Jalongi Retail has officially marked its presence in Bengaluru with the establishment of the Jalongi Brand Hub and processing center in Koramangala. Founder Dippankar Halder underscores the significance of this southern market entry, expressing satisfaction in venturing into Bengaluru, the largest city in the southern region. This strategic move is geared towards strengthening Jalongi’s direct sourcing capabilities and enhancing its overall brand presence in the dynamic southern market.
Halder emphasizes the success of the omnichannel model in consolidating their business. This model enhances brand-consumer interaction, ensures faster delivery, builds trust, and yields a higher marketing return on investment (ROI).
Dippankar Halder, Founder of Jalongi Retail said, “South is an important market for us and we are happy to enter Bengaluru, the largest in the southern region. Our brand presence here will also help us strengthen our southern direct sourcing capabilities. This alliance will enable Jalongi Retail to expand its presence in the southern region and offer a wider range of products and services to our customers. We are consolidating our business with Brand Hubs, a successful omnichannel model that has helped us to strengthen the Brand-Consumer interaction, faster delivery, trust, and a higher marketing ROI”.
To fortify its position in the southern region, Jalongi Retail has entered into a partnership with KHAS Ventures LLP, a growing meat and poultry retailer known for the brand ‘meat-Kompany’ in Bengaluru.
“We are delighted to announce our partnership with Jalongi Retail, a leading online platform for fresh and quality seafood. This collaboration reflects our shared vision and commitment to delivering the best products and services in the industry. As their partners, we will leverage our local knowledge and regional sourcing capabilities to enhance their offerings and reach,” said Hafeez Azeem, Founder, KHAS Ventures LLP.
After its debut in Koramangala, Jalongi Retail has its sights set on the opening of its second brand hub, scheduled for December 2023 in Indiranagar.
Tilaknagar Industries Limited, a prominent Indian Made Foreign Liquor Manufacturer (IMFL), has revealed the launch of Mansion House Chambers Brandy, an upscale addition to its flagship brand, Mansion House.
The newest innovation is now accessible in Puducherry, India, with plans for subsequent launches in other significant southern markets.
“We are immensely passionate about brandy. Our latest premium offering, Mansion House Chambers, is born out of our unrelenting focus on innovation to diversify our portfolio and revitalize the brandy segment,” said Mr Amit Dahanukar, Chairman and Managing Director, Tilaknagar Industries.
During the initial half of the ongoing financial year, Tilaknagar Industries experienced a remarkable 28% growth, primarily driven by brandy. This stands in contrast to the 3 to 4% growth observed in the overall Indian Made Foreign Liquor (IMFL) industry during the same period, as highlighted by Mr. Dahanukar.
The company’s sales volumes experienced a notable increase, reaching 53.6 lakh cases in the half-year ending September 2023, in contrast to the 42 lakh cases reported during the corresponding period a year ago.
“Identifying need-gaps and then introducing superior products has helped us establish price-laddering for brandy, a concept that was non-existent for this category. Mansion House Chambers is a reiteration of our strategy to move up the value chain and shine a spotlight on the brandy segment,” said Mr Ahmed Rahimtoola, Chief Marketing Officer, Tilaknagar Industries.
Tilaknagar Industries has recently launched a range of premium products under its Mansion House brand umbrella.
As part of this, the company introduced India’s first premium flavored brandy, named Flandy, alongside Mansion House Reserve French-Style Brandy.
In September 2023, Mansion House, the brand under Tilaknagar Industries, achieved sales exceeding 40 lakh cases.
India stands out as one of the largest global markets for brandy. Within the Indian Made Foreign Liquor (IMFL) category, brandy maintains its stronghold as the second-largest product segment, constituting over 20 percent of the total IMFL sector by volume.
Febal Casa, the renowned Italian brand under the Colombini Group, has just unveiled its first exclusive store in India at Creaticity, Pune. This noteworthy opening signifies a pivotal moment for Febal Casa as it makes its debut in the Indian retail market.
Nestled within Creaticity, the 5000 sq ft store showcases a top-tier selection of modular kitchens, wardrobes, sofas, beds, dining, and occasional furniture. Accompanied by a range of home décor and furnishings, Febal Casa, a member of the expansive Colombini Group, brings its commitment to high-quality Italian design to the Indian market through Creaticity.
Febal Casa’s collaboration with acclaimed designers such as Matteo Thun, Alfredo Zengiaro, and Paolo Colombo elevates its standing, granting customers access to cutting-edge design and innovation. With over 15 years of expertise, Creaticity stands as a distinctive player in the home interior space, championing a collaborative approach with brand partners. By leveraging technology and interior design, Creaticity creates an immersive shopping experience for its customers.
Massimo Moroni, Colombini Group’ Global Chief Commercial Office, said, “Sophisticated Italian design, high-quality furniture, beauty, and elegance are the distinctive features of the Febal Casa brand, which is a market leader in Italy and a fast-growing international success favored by a winning and unique total living retail formula. After the success of Febal Casa in many key international markets, such as the Middle East where Febal Casa showrooms are in Dubai, Riyadh, and all the other capital cities, now it’s time for India to enjoy the quality and beauty of Febal Casa’s unique Italian kitchens and furniture. There could not have been a better start for Febal Casa’s journey in India than a partnership with such an important and trusted company as Creaticity in the magical cultural hub of Pune. Shortly, Febal Casa Mumbai will open too, then Hyderabad, and then many more.”
Mahesh M, CEO, Creaticity, said, “We are focused on transforming the way people visualize and experience home and interiors. We offer a unique blend of product + solution, technology + creativity, and customization + brands to our customers, and we’re proud to welcome Febal Casa to India , through the Pune region where there is aspiration and design sensibilities that are aligned to the brand’s offerings. This relationship represents the convergence of Italian style and Indian tastes, and we are excited to be able to pioneer the standards of home lifestyles in India.”
Creaticity takes a versatile approach to home and living, providing all-encompassing design services, assistance in product selection, and post-sales maintenance. This positions it as a go-to hub for all home and interior needs. Committed to delivering destination value, Creaticity goes the extra mile with personalized services, curated trails, expert chats, and brand curation, enriching the breadth and depth of its product offerings. The collaboration represents a harmonious blend of Italian sophistication and Indian design sensibilities, ushering in a new era in home lifestyles.
German Doner Kebab is teaming up with Uber Direct to bring delivery services to its restaurants all across the UK, offering customers a convenient way to enjoy their delicious offerings.
Through this collaboration, GDK patrons can now place their orders seamlessly using the GDK app, with delivery services provided by Uber Eats couriers.
Utilizing Uber’s technology, the GDK app ensures customers have access to real-time tracking and around-the-clock customer support.
The rollout encompasses more than 130 German Doner Kebab restaurants nationwide in the UK, marking the culmination of a successful trial period at selected locations earlier in the year.
“We’re looking to make our app a one-stop-shop for our customers so they can enjoy all of their favourite German Doner Kebab dishes – whether that’s at home or in one of our restaurants,” Simon Wallis, GDK CEO, said.
The German Doner Kebab app offers customers the ability to browse menus, explore promotions, and place orders for delivery, click and collect, or table service while dining in the restaurant. By creating an account on the app, customers can also conveniently reorder previous purchases, streamlining the checkout process for faster delivery of their delicious meals.
Lunchbox, a restaurant technology firm, has joined forces with DeliverThat to tap into its catering delivery network, which boasts nearly 20,000 active drivers across the United States.
DeliverThat, a company specializing in catering delivery and setup, operates with drivers spanning all 50 states in the US.
This step enables users of Lunchbox Delivery Dispatch to make use of DeliverThat’s fleet of drivers.
Lunchbox co-founder and CEO Nabeel Alamgir said, “Catering will grow over 10% in the next seven years and it’s our job to enable our enterprise restaurants to tap into that revenue.
“We’re delivering a best-in-class off-premise ordering solution and we’re now building on top of that, partnering with DeliverThat to provide an end-to-end catering delivery experience for our clients.”
At present, Lunchbox collaborates with quick-service restaurant (QSR) brands like Firehouse Subs, Papa Gino’s, Torchy’s Tacos, and Walk-On’s Sports Bistreaux.
This collaboration will introduce premium white-glove delivery services for Lunchbox’s corporate catering clientele.
This partnership is anticipated to enhance the overall customer experience and empower restaurant companies to streamline their entire catering delivery process with greater efficiency.
DeliverThat CEO Darien Terrel said, “This partnership will provide restaurants a strategic entry point into the $300+ billion catering market. Accessibility has been a priority for the DeliverThat team this year and our new partnership with Lunchbox aligns with that directly.”
Last month, Lunchbox forged a partnership with Finix to enlist them as its technology partner for processing online payments for restaurant customers.
As a full-stack payment processor and infrastructure provider, Finix will deliver a fully embedded payments solution to Lunchbox’s enterprise clients.
Snitch, the men’s fashion brand, is gearing up to broaden its reach in smaller cities and towns. According to a senior company official, they aim to establish 7-8 new brick-and-mortar stores in locations such as Surat, Mumbai, and Pune within this fiscal year. Siddharth Dungarwal, the Founder of Snitch, highlighted the brand’s strong foothold in Tier-1 and -II cities. Currently, Snitch boasts a substantial consumer base in Mumbai and Pune, with Delhi-NCR and Bengaluru following closely behind.
“The next set of strategies for us is to penetrate deeper into the tiers and geographies, into the Tier III and -IV plus in terms of team building,” shared Dungarwal.
The fashion brand also looking to open 7-8 offline stores this fiscal and take the number of stores to 22 in the next financial year.
“Expanding our offline stores now, we’ll be doing at least seven to eight offline stores in places like Surat, Mumbai, Pune, and Hyderabad by FY24,” he added.
The fashion brand started its journey as a B2B player in 2019. It expects a revenue of INR 250 crore in the current fiscal.
“We did INR 11 crores in FY21 in terms of net revenue, in year two we did INR 44 crores in revenue (FY22). In our third year, we closed at INR 110 crore in FY23 and this year we should close at INR 250 crore,” he said.
The company launched their app about two years ago with over two million downloads of the app and 55 per cent of the revenue coming through the same, Dungarwal said.
We’ve acquired about 1.5 million customers till now, and our target is to reach a sort of 25 million plus consumers in the next four years, he added.
The bootstrapped company plans an IPO by FY29, Dungarwal said.
Restaurant Brands Asia, the franchisee of Burger King India, saw a positive turn in its quarterly financials on Wednesday. The strategic addition of more outlets and an expanded menu played a key role in narrowing the consolidated net loss to INR 460.3 million ($5.5 million) for the three months ending September 30. This marks a notable improvement from the INR 499.5 million loss reported in the same period last year.
Analysts noted that Burger King India broadened its menu in the quarter by introducing a variety of chicken items and running promotions on specific meals. This strategic move not only boosted customer traffic at its restaurants but also led to higher average bill values.
During the period, Restaurant Brands, with the incorporation of 10 new Burger King outlets, experienced additional advantages from the increased footfall in malls. Analysts highlighted that the company enjoys a larger presence in malls compared to other fast-food chains, contributing to its overall success.
The revenue from operations experienced a 16% growth, reaching INR 6.25 billion.
However, the same-store sales growth, a measure of customer retention, at Burger King restaurants in India decelerated to 3.5%, down from the 27% recorded a year earlier.
Expenditures for the company increased by 15%, primarily driven by a more than 20% surge in ingredient costs.
To reduce expenses in the quarter, numerous fast-food chains, Burger King included, opted to remove items like tomatoes and cheese from their menus.
Rival fast-food chain operators, such as KFC’s operator Devyani International, Pizza Hut’s operator Sapphire Foods India, McDonald’s operator Westlife Foodworld, and Domino’s India franchisee Jubilant FoodWorks, all reported a decline in quarterly profit.
Shares of Restaurant Brands fell as much as 2.1 per cent after the results, before reversing course to rise as much as 3.3 per cent.
They have risen 6.5 per cent so far this year. Devyani and Westlife have each risen 2 per cent and 3 per cent this year, while Sapphire and Jubilant have fallen 4 per cent and 0.5 per cent, respectively.
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