Svami raises INR 6.5 crore in bridge round led by Mumbai Angels Network

 

Svami, a non-alcoholic, aerated beverage brand has raised INR 6.5 crore in a bridge round, leading up to a Series A. The round, led by Mumbai Angels also has current investors participating which include Rukam Capital Trust; Niren Shah, Managing Director of Norwest Venture Partners and Ashish Chand’s Family Office - Yukti Securities. The consumer startup will use the newly raised funds to: Launch a ready to drink product line Penetrate deeper into existing geographies and grow into newer cities in India Apart from being the pioneer in launching premium products in the aerated category, Svami is the only brand in the country to have 100% R&D and manufacturing in house.  Svami’s beverage portfolio is available at select retail outlets, wine shops, and leading restaurants-bars and is now available in 8 states in India (including Delhi NCR, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Goa and Pune) and 2 international markets with over 900 touchpoints.  Bouncing back from Covid-19 Svami took a number of measures to not only survive but make the most of the difficult conditions faced during the lockdown. Pre covid, 70% of revenues were from HoReCa (Hotel/Restaurant/Café)  and 30% from retail, whereas now the company is back to pre covid revenues only with retail sales. Svami also launched a 3 Calorie Tonic Water during the lockdown with a D2C approach which quickly became a success. Svami has also had the best online customer engagement during lockdown because of a host of consumer facing initiatives.  On the fundraise, Sahil Jatana, Co-Founder & CEO at Svami said, “We started Svami to create premium aerated beverages that did not exist in the country. Since launch, we have seen massive product acceptance across retail and HoReCa (Hotel/Restaurant/Café) and now we are doubling down on our first mover advantage with deeper retail presence and a new category launch. Fund raising in the time of covid and an era of zoom calls has had its own way of working and we are happy to have Mumbai Angels be a part of our journey. Nandini Mansinghka, Co-promoter & CEO, Mumbai Angels Network commented “Non-alcoholic beverage is relatively an uncovered space in India which allows companies to create innovation opportunities. Health conscious consumers are changing the narrative of this segment and companies have to adjust and accelerate their strategies in this fast-changing landscape.We are happy to have Svami, a progessive drinks company, is making non-alcoholic drinks on their premium platform as a part of our expanding portfolio in the food and beverage sector.”

About Mumbai Angels Network:  Started in 2006, Mumbai Angels Network (MA Network) is India’s premier platform focused on new venture investing. The network is today 500+ members strong, across 9 chapters (Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore, Kolkata, Hyderabad, Goa, Pune, Jaipur, Chennai) & 25+ cities across the globe. The network today has one of the strongest portfolios in the country with 150+ companies, 70+ exits plus next round investments.