Beer startup Bira 91 raised $10 million from Japan’s largest bank, MUFG Bank, three months after it raised $70 million in its Series D funding round from Japanese beer company Kirin Holdings.
Bira 91 sells craft beers and is present in 550 towns and cities across 18 countries. The craft beer company said in a statement that the new funds would be used to increase production, strengthen the supply chain, and improve its innovation capabilities.
The startup claims to be India’s fourth-largest beer company, with a 5% market share in key markets. Bira 91 has five manufacturing facilities and a capacity of approximately 250 million litres (2.5 Mn hectolitres).
“We are proud to collaborate with Bira 91, the world’s fastest-growing premium beer brand,” said Yasuhide Hayashi, executive officer of MUFG Bank, in response to the investment. With this collaboration, we are excited to collaborate with the Bira 91 team to further their growth story and expand their footprint in India and around the world.”
In an all-stock transaction last October, the beer startup acquired the alco-beverage chain The Beer Cafe. In the same month, it acquired Kamakhya Beer & Bottling Private Limited, a brewery. Bira 91 stated that the acquisition of The Beer Cafe would result in the addition of ten new brand stores to its existing chain.
Bira 91 became a public company in December 2022, a move seen as a precursor to its initial public offering (IPO). It also increased the number of options in its ESOP pool by 15,66,390.
In FY21, the beer maker reduced its loss by 30% to INR 211 Cr, down from INR 304.8 Cr in FY20. At the same time, its total revenue fell to INR 462.8 Cr in FY21 from INR 466 Cr in FY20, while its expenses fell to INR 674 Cr from INR 719.6 Cr.
Bira 91 competes with global behemoths like United Breweries, ABInBev, and Carlsberg. The overall Indian beer market, which was pegged at INR 35,000 crore in 2021, is expected to touch INR 58,000 crore by 2027.
