White Owl Brewery Pvt. Ltd, a Mumbai-based craft beer maker, has raised Rs 40 crore ($5.6 million) in a fresh round of funding led by IIFL Asset Management Ltd.
The company will use the funds to expand its footprint to new markets and also widen its portfolio to include strong and kegged craft beer, White Owl said in a statement.
Javed Murad, founder at White Owl, said the firm is looking forward to deepen the relationship with the IIFL Asset Management team that shares our ethos of ambitious growth.
The round takes the total the company has raised so far to Rs 70 crore. Besides IIFL it counts RAAY Global Investments, the family office of Amit Patni of Patni Computers and early-stage venture capital fund advantEdge Partners as its early backers.
White Owl, which currently sells 20,000 cases of its craft beer each month, aims to strengthen its existing presence across Mumbai, Pune, Goa, Delhi and Bengaluru. It is likely to enter five new markets across north and south India besides two international markets.
Its portfolio includes Spark, a classic summery Belgian Wit, Diablo, a caramel-roast Irish Red Ale; and Ace, a bubbly Apple Cider Ale, which is India’s locally-bottled cider.
Prashasta Seth, senior managing partner at IIFL Asset Management, said it is remarkable to see White Owl expands to over 2,500 bars and wine shops across the country in just few years.
Other alco-beverage deals
The segment has recorded several deals off late. In May, B9 Beverages Pvt. Ltd, which makes craft beer under the brand Bira 91, raised funding from consumer-focussed venture capital firm Sixth Sense Ventures. It also counts Sequoia Capital and Sofina among its other investors.
In the same month, British Brewing Company received an initial commitment of Rs 100 crore from investors including NeoMile Capital in its first external equity fundraise.
In January, United Spirits Ltd sold its Bengaluru-based wine subsidiary Four Seasons Wines Ltd for Rs 31.86 crore to Grover Zampa Vineyards Ltd and its investor Quintela Assets Ltd.
