Bira 91, a domestic premium beermaker, purchased The Beer Cafe with the goal of creating India’s first big beer-focused D2C platform.

Bira 91, an Indian beer maker, has bought The Beer Cafe, a leading domestic alco-beverage chain, in an all-stock acquisition for an unknown sum, just days after acquiring UP-registered Kamakhya Beer & Bottling Private Limited in some kind of a share exchange arrangement.

This agreement will help the former to enrich its pub presence and develop a beer-focused direct-to-consumer platform, focused on promoting the beer culture in the country. Shares of Bira 91 will be allocated to The Beer Cafe’s investors, which have promoters Rahul and Bineeta Singh, Mayfield, Granite Hill, and RB Investments.

The sale to Bira 91 is subject to the legal terms and circumstances outlined in the transaction agreements, according to the company.

The acquisition coincides with South Asia’s festival season when people socialize and dine out after approximately two years of the pandemic. Earlier, it was reported that Bira 91 would expand its production ability and cater to rising consumer demand in the province by acquiring Kamakhya Beer, a division of Chhattisgarh Distilleries Private Limited (CDL), which owns Indian No.1 Magnum Whiskey and Red Indian Rum, among further brands.

How is development apportioned between the two segments?

Bira 91 will have a retail presence through The Beer Cafe’s 33 locations, while the pub chain will receive help from the beer company in terms of innovation and supply chain.

Bira 91 will use its infrastructure, experience, and expansion possibilities to improve The Beer Cafe’s business strategy.

Following the acquisition, The Beer Cafe’s management team, led by CEO and founder Rahul Singh, will continue to drive the brand’s operations and presume full responsibility for managing the formation of a new restaurant vertical, according to a joint statement from Bira 91 and The Beer Cafe.

The deal’s seemingly good developments.

Bira 91 hopes to increase its position in bars and taprooms with this merger, as well as establish India’s first giant beer-focused D2C platform. 

The acquisition will turn the pub chain into a fully-owned unit of Bira 91 and coincides with a period when dining out is experiencing double-digit growth after rebounding quickly from pandemic-induced limitations and frequent closures of pubs and restaurants.

“The same intent of evangelizing and upgrading the beer taste in the territory was the main motive of formation of both Bira 91 and The Beer Cafe, and with this acquisition, we prioritize to catalyze the expansion of beer culture in India,” stated Ankur Jain, Founder, and CEO of Bira 91.

According to sources, Kirin is maintaining contact with Bira 19 to triple its investment, and the business is reportedly planning to augment Bira 19 with unused cash at a US$450 million equity valuation.

The possible rivals.

Bira 91 competes with India’s Kingfisher, Danish brewing companies like Tuborg and Carlsberg, and Anheuser-Busch InBev, which has an appreciable foothold in India. Bira 91 competes in Asia with global behemoth beer brands like Heineken, and United Breweries.

About the two individual companies.

Bira 91 was founded in 2015 and is supported by Sequoia Capital India, Sofina of Belgium, and Kirin Holding of Japan. It features a particular selection of beers and a flagship taproom in Bengaluru. Bira 91 purports to be active in 500 towns and cities across 15 nations, and it brews its beers in four Indian breweries. It has already raised $210 million in investment. According to documents filed, it made Rs 428.2 crore in sales in the fiscal year 2020-21.

The Beer Cafe, on the other hand, was founded in 2012 and already has 33 locations across 15 Tier 1, 2, and 3 cities. The Beer Cafe opened its first location in Gurugram in April 2012.

The timeline of the company’s successful events.

2017– Bira 91 expects to make Rs 150 crore this year and has a presence in 15 cities. Furthermore, the company is aiming for leadership in the premium market and has broadened its portfolio with the addition of two new beers, Bira 91 Light and Bira 91 Strong. 

2019– Bira 91, a luxury beer company backed by Sequoia Capital, is targeting Rs 450 crore in sales next year extending its reach in India and abroad. At present, Bira sells in seven Indian cities and New York. By early next year, it planned to expand its operations to 20 cities in India and penetrate other markets such as Thailand, Singapore, and Malaysia.

Bira 91 now operates one brewery in each of Indore and Nagpur. The company’s third brewery, which was scheduled to open in Rajasthan in the next quarter, was slated to open in the following quarter. The construction of a third brewery was planned to increase the final capacity from 3.5 lakh cases/month to 10 lakh cases/month.

2021– B9 Beverages Pvt., the owner of Indian craft-beer brand Bira 91, plans to open a fifth local brewery by the end of the year in order to capitalize on the country’s growing demand for more flavorful tipples ahead of presenting their planned IPO.

Parting words- The anticipated growth in Beer Market.

According to research, the Indian beer market is predicted to reach INR 580 Bn by 2027, with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 8.3% between 2022 and 2027.