Pune-based producer of packaged Indian ethnic foods Nilon’s Enterprises Pvt Ltd has raised an undisclosed amount private equity firm from BanyanTree Capital, as per a press statement.
Nilon’s is a 50-year-old brand of Indian pickles, spices, instant mixes and cooking pastes, sauces and vermicelli/pasta. The firm has a pan-India presence that spans over 2,000 cities. It is available at 400,000 outlets and reaches over 8 million homes.
It manufactures all its products in-house at its five facilities in Maharashtra and Assam.
The company is led by second-generation entrepreneur Deepak Sanghavi. He was joined by Rajheev Agrawal in 2004, and they together were instrumental in the growth of the company.
In 2008, Nilon’s had received an investment from the London-based Kirit Pathak who developed the eponymous brand Patak’s in the UK involved in Indian curry pastes and spices. Pathak sold the Patak’s business to Associated British Foods in 2007 and became a strategic investor in the foods space.
BanyanTree Capital has invested out of its second fund BanyanTree Growth Capital – II. This marks BanyanTree’s fifth investment from this fund and the third investment in the current year.
Avendus Capital acted as the exclusive financial advisor to the transaction.
The PE firm invested in education services firm MT Educare and renewable energy firm Atria Brindavan Power Ltd from this fund over the recent past.
BanyanTree has completely invested the first fund and now all new investments will be made from the second fund.
In other deals in the packaged food sector Delhi-based Veeba Food Services Pvt Ltd, founded by former promoters of Fun Foods Services Pvt Ltd, raised Rs 10 crore in a Series B round of funding led by the existing investor DSG Consumer Partners.
MTR founding family’s processed food company Maiyas Beverages and Foods Pvt Ltd raised Rs 100 crore ($16.6 million) from Ascent Capital.
WestBridge Capital also picked up nearly 25 per cent stake in DFM Foods, the maker of salted snacks under the 'Crax' brand from its promoters for Rs 64.5 crore or a little over $10 million.
Last year, India Value Fund invested $40 million in Kochi-based VKL Seasoning, which makes food ingredients and flavouring solutions.
In the same space, another firm Cremica Foods has attracted interest from PE players and is reportedly being wooed by large investors like Kedaara Capital and The Carlyle Group.
(Edited by Joby Puthuparampil Johnson)