Delhi-based Indulge Beverages Pvt Ltd, which makes and sells tea and coffee 'capsules' under the Bonhomia brand, has raised $2 million (Rs 12.5 crore) from a group of angel investors led by co-founder and former senior managing director of Helion Venture Partners, Kanwaljit Singh, the company said on Thursday.
The other investors who participated in the round included Ashok Dhingra, former director of strategic initiatives at SAB Miller; real estate group scion Apurva Salarpuria of Salarpuria Group; Shripad Nadkarni, former marketing head at Coca Cola India and currently director at MarketGate Consulting; Sarvesh Shahra, business head (foods) at Ruchi Soya Industries; Anand Morzaria, CEO at Pennywise Solutions Pvt Ltd; Alok Rawat & family (Dubai-based serial angel investor); Ramrod Advisors; Gidwani family (Mumbai-based angel investor and Nitesh Kripalani (INSEAD Alumnus).
Singh would represent these angel investors on Indulge Beverages' board.
Commenting on the investment, Singh said, “Bonhomia is delivering on a strong emerging consumer trend in India. I also see a great potential for the company to build a global brand, especially with the range of Indian origin tea flavours.”
The three-year-old startup will use the proceeds towards marketing its products as well as developing newer blends of beverages. It is also planning to launch 8-12 blends in the current financial year and also augment its online and offline presence.
Founded by former merchant banker Kunal Bhagat along with a former executive of Pepsico, Tuhin Jain, in January 2012, Indulge Beverages says it sources coffee from the estates in South India and roasts, grounds and encapsulates them in less than 24 hours.
Its own brand Bonhomia was launched in March 2014 as a premium Indian origin tea and coffee capsules, which are compatible with Nespresso machines.
At present, it sells its products through e-commerce platforms such as Fabmart and Snapdeal. On the other side, for the offline channel it has partnered with Modern Bazaar, Foodhall and Godrej Nature's Basket among others. Its offline store presence is currently limited to Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, Pune and Hyderabad.
The company had scaled up its pod capacity from 1 million capsules to 20 million capsules in the last six months.
“We are well placed in terms of our reach in the B2B and B2C space. This infusion of capital combined with the industry expertise brought in by the distinguished team of investors will help us expand our geographic presence as well as product range,” Tuhin Jain, co-founder and CMO, Indulge Beverages, said.
The firm estimates that the global market for Nespresso format is estimated to be over $10 billion, of which India represents a mere 0.33 per cent with the market size of just Rs 200 crore.
(Edited by Joby Puthuparampil Johnson)