Beverage brands targeting non-alcoholic segment for expansion

Artist, Designer and illustrator, Param Sahib is known for his quirky, offbeat design sensibilities. Jade Forest partners with him to create a one-of-a-kind limited edition label that captures the essence of India.

The label is dedicated to the soul of India, its various colours, components and hues that define our diversity. 

“Art has the power to bring communities together. Be it a social message for a cause, or simply narrating a story, it gives a freshness and purity to the delivery of a message. We see this collaboration with Param as a way to tell a shared story and to inspire belongingness,” shared Punweet Singh, Co-Founder at Jade Forest.

The thought behind this collaboration is a simple one; differences should encourage diversity, not divide.

“The idea behind this label was to capture the colours, elements and hues that represent the diversity of India. When one looks at this bottle, I want them to think - 'India'. This campaign with Jade Forest is unique because while a lot of focus is given to Pride month and working with people from the community around this time, this campaign talks about inclusivity for people from all walks of life,” added Param Sahib.

Through this campaign, Jade Forest aims to truly make a difference in the community, and not only be a messenger of social change. A part of the proceeds from the sale of the Limited Edition Ginger Ale will be donated to Naz Foundation, a non-profit that works in the field of empowering the LGBTQIA+ community & adolescent children with HIV from economically marginalized communities.

These limited edition bottles, priced at INR 99, will be sold exclusively on the Jade Forest website.

Svami Drinks, the non-alcoholic beverage maker, has secured Rs 7.5 crore in its pre-Series A round of funding from a mix of institutional and individual investors.

The pre-Series A funding round was led by Rukam Capital Trust, a Delhi-based early-stage venture capital firm. The round has also seen participation from Niren Shah, Managing Director of Norwest Venture Partners India, and Ashish Chand’s family office Yukti Securities.

Sahil Jatana, Co-Founder and Chief Executive, Svami, stated, “We started Svami to create premium aerated beverages that did not exist in the country. Since the launch, we have seen massive product acceptance across retail and HoReCa (Hotel/Restaurant/Café), and are now capitalising on our first-mover advantage. The overall F&B ecosystem in India is seeing an evolution, consumers are a lot more discerning and restaurants want to match up to that.”

The fresh capital will be utilized by the startup for deeper penetration into existing markets and foray into new territories. The funds will also be used for new product development, increasing production capacity and hiring professionals.

Archana Jahagirdar, Managing Partner, Rukam Capital Trust, said, “The founders’ zeal and the product impressed us the most. With increased demand, bar menus now feature global and home-grown liquor brands that need premium mixers to go with them. We look forward to working with the founders to drive their next phase of growth.”

In August 2018, Svami, owned and operated by Foxtrot Beverages Pvt Ltd, had raised an angel round led by Singapore-based VC fund RB Investments.

Portfolio of Svami

Launched in January 2018, Svami Drinks was started by Jatana, Rahul Mehra and Aneesh Bhasin. Apart from the aerated category, the brand also manufactures tonic waters in India.

At present, Svami has five products in the market, including original tonic water, light tonic water, cucumber tonic water, grapefruit tonic water, and the recently launched ginger ale. 

The startup claims that more than half a million drinks have been consumed since the launch of the brand. 

Aneesh Bhasin, Co-Founder of Svami, stated, “All product recipes are curated in-house, along with bottling and packaging.”

The company’s beverage portfolio is available at select retail outlets, wine shops, and restaurants-bars across eight states in the country.

Several other deals

In recent times, Coolberg Beverages Pvt. Ltd, which makes non-alcoholic beer, secured $3.5 million in a Series A round led by RB Investments and existing investor India Quotient.

In May, B9 Beverages Pvt Ltd, which makes craft beer under the brand Bira 91, raised funding from Sixth Sense Ventures, the consumer-focused venture capital firm. The company also counts Sequoia Capital and Sofina among its investors.

British Brewing Company received an initial commitment of Rs 100 crore from investors including NeoMile Capital in its first external equity fundraise in the same month.

In January, Grover Zampa Vineyards Ltd and its investor Quintela Assets Ltd acquired Bengaluru-based wine subsidiary Four Seasons Wines Ltd from United Spirits Ltd for Rs 31.86 crore.

Svami, a company that makes non-alcoholic, aerated beverages, is planning to penetrate deeper into existing geographies. The brand further aims to grow into newer cities of India, apart from expanding the current product line.

The expansion plans come after the company has secured Rs 7.5 crore in Pre-Series-A funding round, led by Rukam Capital Trust, and Norwest Venture Partners India’s Managing Director Niren Shah investing in his personal capacity.

The Series-A funding round has also seen participation from Investor Ashish Chand’s family office, Yukti Securities. Earlier, Svami had raised an angel round led by Singapore-based venture capital fund RB Investments.

Archana Jahagirdar, Managing Partner, Rukam Capital Trust, said, “The founders’ zeal and the product impressed us the most. With increased demand, bar menus now feature global and home-grown liquor brands that need premium mixers to go with them. We look forward to working with the founders to drive their next phase of growth”.

Sahil Jatana, Co-Founder and Chief Executive, Svami, stated, “We started Svami to create premium aerated beverages that did not exist in the country. Since the launch, we have seen massive product acceptance across retail and HoReCa (Hotel/Restaurant/Café), and are now capitalising on our first-mover advantage. The overall F&B ecosystem in India is seeing an evolution, consumers are a lot more discerning and restaurants want to match up to that.”

Aneesh Bhasin, Co-Founder of Svami, stated, “All product recipes are curated in-house, along with bottling and packaging.”

Also Read: Non-alcoholic beer brand Coolberg secures Series A funding of $3.5 mn

Besides launching premium products in the aerated category, Svami is also one of the first brands to produce and manufacture tonic waters in India. At present, the brand has 5 stock-keeping units (SKUs) in the market, including Original Tonic Water, Light Tonic Water, Cucumber Tonic Water, Grapefruit Tonic Water and Ginger Ale.

Since the launch of the brand, over half a million Svami drinks have been consumed.

Eyeing Global Expansion

Svami is presently available in eight states and Union Territories of India, including Delhi-NCR, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Goa and Pune.

The company boasts of having about 600 clients like Social, Taj, Nature Basket, Modern Bazaar, among others. It has also collaborated with local kiranas in Mumbai and 50 wine stores in Bengaluru.

Recently, the non-alcoholic beverage maker introduced its products in Hong Kong. It is further planning to tap markets such as Singapore, Thailand and Sri Lanka.

Anheuser-Busch InBev (AB InBev), the world’s leading brewer, has introduced its first non-alcohol beer, Budweiser 0.0, in India. With this, the company has forayed into the non-alcohol beer segment in the country.

The launch is in line with AB InBev’s Global Smart Drinking Goals to ensure that low and no-alcohol beer make up at least 20% of the company's global beer volume by 2025.

Ben Verhaert, President-South Asia at AB InBev, said, “Budweiser is one of the fastest-growing brands in the country and we are thrilled to add Budweiser 0.0 to our existing portfolio of brands here in India. While the market for non-alcohol beers is still nascent in India, as a leading brewer we see a great opportunity to grow this segment.”

“The launch is in line with our Global Smart Drinking Goals to ensure that low and no alcohol beer make up at least 20% of our global beer volume by 2025. Beer is a drink of moderation and our objective is to offer our consumers various choices to enjoy beer freely and responsibly,” he further stated.

Budweiser 0.0 will be priced at Rs 80 and Rs 90 for a 330ml Can and a 330 ml bottle, respectively.

Kartikeya Sharma, Vice President Marketing - South Asia, AB InBev, added, “We are deeply committed to making our patrons feel as included as possible by offering them avenues to enjoy the signature taste of the iconic Budweiser freely and responsibly. We are mindful of the growing demand for conscious choices and Budweiser 0.0, brewed with quality ingredients like all our beers globally, offers a great alternative. We are bullish on the future of this industry and look forward to witness what is in store for us.”

Anheuser-Busch InBev (AB InBev), the world’s largest brewer, aims to launch two non-alcoholic beers in India. This move in line with the brand’s global push to provide more low- to non-alcoholic beverages to consumers all over the world.

India’s second largest beer company will be introducing the two products, namely Budweiser 0.0 and Hoegaarden 0.0, in the next three months.

Ben Verhaert, Business Unit President, South Asia, AB InBev, said, "For now, the products will be imported into India. Beer is a drink of moderation and as a beer company we need to be able to offer choices to consumers."

AB InBev sells brands like Budweiser, Corona, Knockout, and Beck’s Ice.

Verhaert stated, "The new launches are for those who don’t want to drink alcohol but want to socialize and that’s a way for them to be included in the beer category. However, the market for such drinks is still very small in India."

हैनिकन द्वारा नियंत्रित युनाइटेड  ब्रुरीज़ (यूबी) और हेनुअर बुश इनबेव भारत की दो सबसे बड़ी बियर निर्माता कम्पनीज़ अब मादक द्रव्य प्रतिबंधित राज्य गुजरात में गैर-मादक द्रव्यों को लेकर एक-दूसरे के विरुद्ध मैदान में उतरने वाली है। गुजरात राज्य में सन् 1960 से शराब के उत्पादन, बिक्री व सेवन पर रोक है।

दोनों  ब्रूअर्ज जल्द ही गुजरात के बाजार में गैर-मादक बियर के साथ उतरने वाले हैं। युनाइटेड  ब्रुरीज़ इस सप्ताह तक ‘किंगफिशर रेडलर’ नाम से गुजरात में धावा बोलेगी, तो एबी इनबेव की इस रेस में कुछ महीने बाद जुड़ने की संभावना है।   

यूबी के मुख्य बिजनेस अफसर रमेश विश्वनाथन ने बताया, "गुजरात के बाजार में इस तरह के उत्पाद के लिए बहुत संभावनाएं है, क्योंकि यहां इस तरह के उत्पाद उपलब्ध ही नहीं है। 

यूबी का ‘किंगफिशर रेडलर’ ताजे जौ मिले दूध और नींबू के रस से मिलकर बना है। 

विश्वनाथ ने आगे कहा, "देश का यह पश्चिमी राज्य गैर-मादक बियर के सबसे बड़े बाज़ारों में से एक है और यहां मुख्यत: व्यापारी और आयतक ही अपनी सेवाएं दे रहे हैं। फिलहाल यह बाज़ार सिर्फ आयतित उत्पादों का है, महंगा है, छिन्न-विछिन्न है और इसे कोई संभाल भी नहीं मिली हुई है। सबसे बड़ी बात कि जिसका स्वाद लोगों को रास नहीं, वो बियर मिल रही है।

एबी इनबेव के निदेशक बेन वरहार्ट ने कहा कि हम विश्व के दूसरे सबसे बड़े उपभोक्ता समूह को लिए भारत में गैर-मादक बियर के लिए एक बहुत बड़ा बाजार देखते हैं, क्योंकि यहां कई कारणों से मादक द्रव्यों से परहेज़ भी बहुत अधिक है। हमारा उदेश्य इस बाज़ार को एक दिशा देना है, जहां उपभोक्ता को उसके चुनाव एवं वरीयता के अनुसार शामिल किया जा सके। 

Heineken-controlled United Breweries and Anheuser-Busch InBev, India's two largest beer makers, will soon be in a battle over non-alcoholic drinks in the dry state of Gujarat. In Gujarat, the making, selling and drinking of alcohol is banned since 1960.

The two brewers will soon enter Gujarat with non-alcoholic beer. UB will foray into the dry state with non-alcoholic beer Kingfisher Radler this week, while AB InBev is expected to join the race in a couple of months.

Ramesh Visvanathan, Chief New Business Officer at UB, said, "Gujarat is an opportunity market for this product as it’s a state with no access to alcoholic drinks." 

UB's Kingfisher Radler is made of fresh barley malts and natural lemon juice.

"The western state is one of the largest non-alcoholic beer markets in the country, served mostly by drinks sold by traders and importers. The current products in the market are imported, expensive, sparsely distributed and not supported. Above all, they have a beer taste which people don’t want," Visvanathan added.

Ben Verhaert, President – India at AB InBev, said, "We see non-alcoholic beer as an opportunity for the beer category to offer choice in India, which is the second largest consumer base in the world where the level of abstinence is high for various reasons. Our intent is to shape the category by making it a more inclusive place for consumers with diverse choices and preferences."