German packaged food brand Dr. Oetker on Wednesday said it has acquired Noida-based start-up Kuppies, marking its foray into the ready-to-eat cakes and desserts segment.
The company, which has a strong presence in categories such as mayonnaise, spreads and Italian sauces under the FunFoods brand, is also targeting to close 2021 with a revenue of ₹400 crore, recording a growth of about 20%, Oliver Mirza, MD and CEO, Indian Subcontinent at Dr. Oetker told The Hindu.
While Mr. Mirza did not reveal financial details of the acquisition, he added that globally cakes and desserts is a significant growth pillar for the firm, and he expects the same in India.
“So far, our major growth pillar is the FunFoods sub brand that we acquired in 2008... with regards to Kuppies, we have acquired their production hub, the innovation centre as well as the brand. While it is not that big a brand, they had a strong business selling cake chains such as Cafe Coffee Day, Keventers, Krispy Kreme in Delhi NCR.In lockdown, this collapsed completely,” he said.
Mr.Mirza said he believes Kuppies hadthe potential to grow to be the same size as FunFoods or about a ₹300-₹400 crore brand in the next 5-7 years, catapulting India into the top 10 markets for Dr. Oetker globally by 2030.
“From a global perspective, our sales are about €7.3 billion. India ranks among the food division among the top 20 countries among the 41 countries. We really have the potential to reach the top 10 countries by sales by 2030...it’s an exciting business. India is still growing tremendously. At €100 million, we would be among the top 10 markets,” he added.
The company will be introducing eight products to start with — four flavours in brownies and four types of pound cakes, and all the products will be vegetarian or without eggs. Mr. Mirza added that the company had seen a preference for vegetarian products in its other categories such as mayonnaise where 99% customers prefer the vegetarian product.
