Latest news with #Bira
Time of India
21-07-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Tilaknagar Industries, Bira maker named in Andhra Pradesh liquor scam
Synopsis Tilaknagar Industries and Bira maker B9 Beverages have been named in a chargesheet by Andhra Pradesh Police for alleged kickbacks and irregularities in liquor trade. Tilaknagar reportedly earned ₹1,472 crore from APSBCL, with ₹218 crore allegedly routed as kickbacks via gold transactions. B9 Beverages earned ₹360 crore, with ₹43 crore allegedly funneled back through fake vendor payments. Both firms deny receiving official communication so far.
Time of India
03-07-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Bira beer maker restructures leadership amid liquidity woes and revenue decline
B9 Beverages , the makers of Bira beer , has hired senior leaders and made changes to its top deck at a time when the company is facing liquidity woes and repayment issues to retail investors from KredX, a fintech marketplace. The company appointed Vikram Qanungo, who returns to Bira 91 after 2018, as its chief financial officer again. He was Bira 91's CFO in 2015-2019, replacing Meghna Agrawal, who held the position from 2019-2024. Bira 91 also appointed Dr. Manoj Mishra, ex head of supply chain at Ball Corporation (India and SEA), as the vice president, manufacturing. The company has promoted Nayanabhiram Deekonda, a nine year veteran in the company, as SVP – sales, heading India sales, a designation that was vacant since Deepak Malhotra, who left in 2023 to join Inbrew as chief business officer - beer. Deekonda was SVP - chief of people, product and growth from October 2024. B9 Beverages also promoted Deepak Sinha, ex VP international business, as SVP – brand & innovation. Sudhir Jain, SVP & chief of integrated supply chain will also handle additional responsibilities of heading people function at the company. And finally Vandana Sahni, ex-head of financial planning and analysis at Bira 91 is also promoted to chief of staff and head, strategy. The company confirmed these appointments and management changes to ET. According to regulatory filings, Bira91 posted revenues' decline of 22% in FY24 to Rs638 crore, and its losses widened by 40.58% to reach Rs749 crore. ET reported in May that the company was behind on paying its retail investors as well, in the company KredX, to which Jain back then said, "There are liquidity issues that the company is facing… but the management has told lenders that it is in the process of raising funds that will help it manage debt repayment" Back in June last year, ET had also reported on the company having supply issues, with almost no supply in most of its key markets for months at a stretch. The valuation of the company has been flat from October 2021 till April 2024 at $523 million, as per Tracxn. The company is also in advanced talks with BlackRock, which is planning to invest Rs500 crore in the promoter group of Bira91.
Mint
26-06-2025
- Business
- Mint
Bira beer maker raises ₹85 cr in rights issue, cuts workforce to rein in costs
New Delhi/Mumbai: B9 Beverages has already raised ₹85 crore by selling fresh shares to existing investors at a massive discount, as the maker of Bira beer shrinks its workforce and restructures its operations to focus on fewer markets to cut costs, people close to the development said. The company, founded by Ankur Jain in 2015, is raising a total ₹100 crore in a rights issue for working capital requirements, and the remainder ₹15 crore is expected to be raised by the middle of July, the people cited earlier said on the condition of anonymity. These shares are being sold at ₹325 apiece, a substantial discount of 55% from a previous round when Japanese beer maker Kirin came in at over ₹700 per share. B9 currently has about 6,500 private investors, and a large family office is also likely to now come in as a first-time investor. The people cited earlier also said B9 has now reworked its arrangements with four breweries, which will no longer manufacture exclusively for them. This is being done to control costs. Read more: India's liquor stocks are on a high—what's fuelling the rally, and what could derail it It is also in the midst of raising an ₹800 crore round through which some of its early backers may look to cash out. A rights issue is a mechanism to raise funds, in which a company offers its existing shareholders the chance to buy more shares typically at a discounted price, in proportion to their holdings. Workforce shrink "A huge amount of shares have come up for sale in the last two years largely because of an exodus of employees in the last two years who sold their employee stock options (Esops). The company has also pruned its employee base from 975-odd employees to 500 or so, some of these corporate employees had stock options. Interestingly the number of shareholders is more than what restaurant aggregator Zomato had itself before its IPO," said a company official, who is close to the development. Beer production is a capital-intensive industry, with states claiming nearly two-thirds of its revenues. It also has high freight costs, which reduces profitability. As per B9 Beverages' most recent filings with the ministry of corporate affairs, its operating revenue slumped to ₹638.5 crore in FY24 from ₹824.3 crore in FY23. Losses also widened significantly, rising to ₹748.8 crore in FY24 compared to ₹445.4 crore in FY23. The company, which had earlier planned to go public in 2026, has now put it off to 2028. Mint has also learnt that the company has multiple share classes, with equity holders owning only a small portion of the shares as of 16 June, when part of the rights issue closed. Other passive shareholders will also participate and the window will close by the middle of next month. So far, it has already received commitments for about 85% of the right's issue amount and the aggregate number of investors participating so far is over 300, which includes the large family office, which is expected to come for the first time. "It's definitely a big discount from the last time when the Japanese beer maker came in at ₹718 per share. From that, this is a 55% discount, that's why a lot of employees have participated. It's a good price. While my investment could go either way, most investors and myself believe this could go up because it's strengthening its position in many markets again, one of which is Delhi," the official cited earlier added. Shifting focus The company, according to its latest investor relations report accessed by Mint, has now reduced its focus from 25-30 big markets to just the bigger metros and four tier-II cities. Queries sent to Ankur Jain, the company's founder, remained unanswered till press time. Read more: India is the world's fastest-growing alcohol market when global demand cools In FY23, Japan's Kirin Global (the makers of Kirin Ichiban beer) invested $70 million to become the largest shareholder in B9 Beverages. In FY24, Tokyo-based Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group invested $10 million in the company, which subsequently secured an additional $50 million in external commercial borrowing from Kirin and Tiger Pacific Capital. In February, Mint also reported that B9 was facing troubles with tax authorities in various states with huge pending liabilities not just to states but also to employees who had not been receiving salaries on time. However, a bulk of its employee dues from the last financial year have now been settled, said two company insiders. It has also worked on changing its sales and supply chain models in an attempt to turn the company around. It is now largely focusing on distributing its beer instead of manufacturing it, much like what other brands in the FMCG sector do, easing up its requirements for fixed and working capital. It has now reworked its business model with four breweries to move to contract manufacturing. Just two breweries—in Gwalior and Nagpur—will continue to exclusively produce for them. The beer company, in its investor deck, added that it was streamlining operations to focus on Andhra Pradesh, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, and Maharashtra—which now account for 55% of its revenue. It said it cut its manufacturing footprint by 40%, reducing capacity from 25 million to 15 million cases to improve utilisation to 58% by FY26 and slash factory overheads by nearly 50%. A shift to contract manufacturing at four breweries will save it as much as ₹600 crore annually, it added. With this, its margins could rise to 66% in FY26 from 63% in FY24. Fixed costs, too, it said, had dropped by ₹2,000 crore versus FY24, driven by a 40% reduction in headcount and tighter control over marketing, with spends now focused on in-store promotions. Read more: India's liquor makers are having a party. And it's not going to end soon According to industry body Brewers Association of India, 400 million beer cases were sold in FY23 and about 430 million in FY25. Three large brands command an 86% share of the overall market, including Kingfisher, Carlsberg and Budweiser maker Ab InBev (in no particular order). According to Bira's investor deck for May 2025, it is the country's fourth-largest beer company with a manufacturing capacity of 2.1 million hectolitres or 25 million cases per annum.
Daily Mirror
21-06-2025
- Daily Mirror
New map shows UK streets hit hardest by 'Kamikaze' shoplifting
As 'Kamikaze' shoplifting sweeps Britain, a new crime map has revealed the high streets most plagued by the retail theft 'epidemic' - use our interactive map to see how it compares where you live A new map has revealed the UK high streets hit hardest by a wave of 'Kamikaze' shoplifting - as brazen thieves snatch goods in plain sight with little fear of consequences. More than 500,000 shoplifting offences were recorded by police in England and Wales in 2024 - a 20% surge on the previous year, and the highest since records began more than 20 years ago. Over half (56%) of retail workers say they've witnessed so-called Kamikaze shoplifting - blatant, in-your-face theft - in their workplace, according to research by SafetyCulture. One in eight (13%) say it happens daily, and over a third (37%) see it weekly. The British Independent Retail Association (Bira) calls it a 'tipping point', warning some offenders now believe they can 'walk into a shop, take what they want in full view of staff and customers, and walk out knowing there will be no consequences.' Adding to the trend, security firms report a 'massive increase' in pensioners shoplifting - driven by cost-of-living pressures. 'For us over the last 12 months, we've got this different level of crime now. We're now experiencing something different - pensioners, people who don't normally shoplift,' said John Nussbaum of Kingdom Service Group. The crime map reveals Leeds City Centre as the worst-hit area, with 3,004 shoplifting offences in 2024 - that's one every three hours. Fitzrovia West & Soho in Westminster followed with 2,430, and Brighton's North Laine & the Lanes came third with 2,116. Also ranking high on the list is Cathays South & Bute Park in Cardiff (1,753), the City of London (1,687), Central Birmingham (1,407), Newcastle City Centre (1,240), Liverpool's Central & Islington district (1,240), and Stone & Crossways in Dartford (1,229). Crime figures are available for every one of more than 7,000 neighbourhoods in England and Wales, except areas covered by Greater Manchester Police, as the force has not supplied crime data for the last year. The figures cover neighbourhoods with between 7,000 and 10,000 residents, which the government designates as Middle Super Output Areas (MSOAs). The statistics do not include crimes reported at train stations, as British Transport Police record them. You can see how retail theft compares near you using our interactive map. The news comes after a former shoplifter who once stole £3 million worth of goods says Brits now have 'a licence to steal' as shoplifting hits record highs. Cullan Mals, 32, used to steal up to £2,000 a day - as much as £14,000 a week - before turning his life around. He says soft sentences made it easy: 'People now have a licence to steal and it's getting even worse with the cost-of-living crisis.' Now a podcaster working with a drug recovery charity in Cardiff, he believes tougher penalties are the only solution: 'People now have total licence to steal. I think personally, if it's on an organised level, the sentences need to be harsher because at the end of the day these people know penalties are weak. When you go to an off licence, everything is behind Perspex - it's a bit dystopian but it works. Big supermarkets should lock up all meat, booze, aftershave, and then just have a guy there whose job it is to unlock the goods for shoppers.' His comments come as repeat offender Martyn Boyns was arrested and charged with nine counts of shop theft and one of fraud in Penzance and Newlyn. The £1,200 haul included nappies, perfume, meat, and booze. Penzance Police, who announced the arrest on Facebook, said officers had been 'working tirelessly' to gather evidence. Boyns has now been banned from several shops and four streets in the town. Another former shoplifter, Keeley Knowles - once known as 'Birmingham's most prolific' - stole thousands of pounds' worth of goods to fund her heroin addiction. After 28 prison stints, she's now 18 months clean and working to inspire recovery. She credits her turnaround to West Midlands Police 's Offending to Recovery programme, which began in Erdington in 2018 and is now expanding to Coventry, Dudley, Walsall, and Wolverhampton. The scheme was developed after research showed 70% of shop theft was linked to heroin and crack addiction. Meanwhile in Edinburgh, shopkeeper Majid Mohamed says his mobile phone accessories and repair shop is regularly targeted - especially during peak tourist seasons. 'It depends on the time of year really how bad shoplifting is, it's particularly bad at Christmas and New Year and of course The Fringe, the busy times for the city,' he said. 'We have CCTV but when they are in groups they provide cover for each other. Sometimes items are stolen without us even noticing until too late. And even though we have the cameras the thieves don't seem to care, it's a 'what are you going to do' kind of attitude, pretty intimidating.' Jeff Moody, Bira's Chief Commercial Officer, said: 'The fact that shoplifting has reached this unprecedented level is frankly alarming, but it's the brazen nature of these crimes that's particularly concerning. What's particularly troubling is that half of our members are now choosing not to report thefts because they've lost faith in getting any meaningful response. 'The harm to retailers goes far beyond the immediate financial loss. Independent businesses operate on wafer-thin margins, and every theft chips away at their ability to invest, grow, and employ people. We need urgent action from police forces to treat retail crime with the seriousness it deserves, and for the courts to send a clear message that this behaviour won't be tolerated.' Shoplifting was first described as an 'epidemic' in 2023 by Dame Sharon White, the chair of John Lewis Partnership, and since then, crime - and the cost to retailers - has spiralled. The British Retail Consortium (BRC) said retailers footed an 'eye-watering' £4.2 billion bill from crime last year, including £2.2bn lost to shoplifting, and £1.8bn spent on crime prevention measures.
Economic Times
07-05-2025
- Business
- Economic Times
Bira Maker's interest payouts delayed amid liquidity woes
B9 Beverages, the maker of Bira alcoholic beverages, has delayed interest payouts to some of its debt investors through fintech marketplace KredX, according to people aware of the matter. The New Delhi-based company's revenue slumped and losses shot up in FY24, the last year for which financial details are to regulatory filings, revenue fell 22% to Rs 638 crore from Rs 824 crore a year before. Its net loss widened to Rs 749 crore from Rs 445 crore. A retail investor who has debt exposure to Bira told ET that he's not received payments in March and April for investments made via KredX.B9 Beverages raised working capital debt through KredX using its unpaid invoices as companies raise debt in this form from banks but startups such as KredX allow retail investors to make such investments as well. Ankur Jain, founder of B9 Beverages, told ET the company has worked with KredX for over six years and has been meeting all obligations to platforms and lenders to the fullest. 'Any delays on specific limits are pre-aligned with KredX in accordance with the provisions of the agreements and we are not in default of any obligations,' he said. KredX did not respond to ET's queries. Liquidity troubles Over the past year, B9 Beverages has borrowed around Rs 60 crore through fintech firms such as Yubi and venture debt funds like Alteria Capital, according to the Registrar of Companies filings. It has also picked up venture debt from Trifecta Capital and Anicut Capital. Jain said there hadn't been any delay in repayments. 'There are liquidity issues that the company is facing… but the management has told lenders that it is in the process of raising funds that will help it manage debt repayment,' one of the investors told ET. Fundraising plan Jain, through his holding company Day1 Advisors Pvt Ltd, and B9 Beverages are also in discussions to close an Rs 800 crore financing round. Of this, Rs 500 crore will be raised by Day1 Advisors through structured debt, and this will be used to buy stakes from B9 Beverages' existing investors. Day1 Advisors had acquired 10% of B9 Beverages by buying stakes from existing investor Peak XV Partners (formerly Sequoia Capital India) in FY24 by raising structured debt from Axis Capital. According to a credit rating report by Icra, the terms of the transaction state that Day1 and its promoters have pledged B9 Beverages equity as security against the borrowing. As of March this year, Jain and his family and Japanese beverage firm Kirin held 20% each in B9 Beverages. Peak XV Partners held 14%, while Sofina had 6%. Growth path Founded in 2015, Bira has raised $457 million in equity funding over multiple funding rounds from large investors such as Peak XV Partners, Sofina, Sixth Sense Ventures, Kirin Holdings and others, according to Tracxn. Last year, B9 Beverages closed a $50 million funding round through a mix of equity and debt. Tiger Pacific Capital acquired a 4% stake in the company by investing $25 million and Kirin Holdings paid another $25 million via external commercial borrowings (ECBs). On April 21, The Times of India reported that the company had delayed salaries and vendor payments. ET reported in February that the company changed its name to B9 Beverages Ltd from B9 Beverages Pvt. Ltd. Compliance issues over this name change resulted in the firm having to write off inventory worth Rs 80 crore and halt sales for a few months. 'We had to re-register our products in each of the 27 states that we were operational in, with the new company name,' Jain said. 'This transition started in Q4 FY24 and spilled over to H1 FY25, with the beginning of the new excise licence year in most of our states, causing an average disruption of three-four months, especially in peak summer quarter.'Jain also cited policy changes in Andhra Pradesh and Delhi in the last few months that hit business in these geographies, which account for a substantial part of its revenue. But he said business had stabilised and the company grew 40% on-year in the last quarter of FY25.
