India’s largest manufacturer of ethnic savouries and sweets Bikaji Foods International is likely to raise Rs 1,000 crore IPO, this week, at a valuation of around $1 billion. The snacks maker also has expansion plans in the pipeline.
Private equity companies such as Lighthouse Funds, IIFL, Avendus and Axis have invested in Bikaji. Lighthouse acquired 12% of the company in 2012 and partially trimmed its stake to allow IIFL to invest in Bikaji. Sources say the IPO may provide an exit opportunity to Lighthouse Funds.
Experts highlight that if the Rajasthan-based company does go public, it will join the likes of Prataap Snacks, and DFM Foods. The maker of Yellow Diamond chips, Prataap Snacks made a strong debut on the bourses in 2021. It counts venture capital firm Sequoia Capital as an investor. And DFM Foods, which is renowned for its brand Crax, regards private equity firm WestBridge Capital as a key shareholder.
Bikaji, as per ET, has six manufacturing facilities located in Rajasthan, Assam and Karnataka to make about 400 tonnes of snacks per day. The company makes 300 products – a wide range of bhujia, namkeen, sweets, papad and frozen foods. Bikaji’s sales volume grew 13.85% annually to 74.7 million kilograms between FY16 and FY20. Its revenue grew 14.2% to Rs 1,073 crore in the same period. Statista data shows that for Bikaji, namkeen accounts for 37% of sales, Bhujia by 32%, candy 10%, followed by papad and others.
Moreover, the Indian RTE snacks market is expected to grow at a compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of 8.9% between 2021 and 2025. The growth of RTE snacks is pushed by its easy availability, longer shelf-life, rising urbanization and increasing disposable incomes.
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As such, Bikaji plans to open more facilities at strategic locations in the next couple of years as well as launch new brands across various categories.
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