Japan's Kirin raises stake in Bira 91 to about 20% for ₹570 crore

Japanese beverages group Kirin Holdings has increased its stake in B9 Beverages, the maker of Bira 91 beer, close to 20% from 10% by investing an additional ₹570 crore in the company, valuing the beer maker at $550-600 million post the fundraise, two executives directly aware of the development said.

"This is Bira 91's largest fundraise. There's a strong recovery of demand for beer led by younger and new consumers. The forecast for this decade is that the Indian beer market, at $8 billion by value sales, will grow to $20 billion by 2030," said CEO Ankur Jain, while confirming the investment.

The fundraise comes at a time when beer consumption is seeing strong recovery after two years of pandemic-induced stress that led to closure of bars and restaurants, followed by curbs on operating hours of bars and serving of alcohol.

Kirin Holdings had invested $30 million in the Indian beer maker early last year.

'Mkt Share More than Doubled in Last 2 Yrs'
While the focus will remain on India, the company was looking at a larger global footprint beyond the 18 countries it has a presence in, said Jain. "We will use the investments to expand production capacity with two new breweries, strengthen Bira's market share and drive innovation for craft beers," he said. Bira 91 has five breweries as of now.

Last month, B9 Beverages acquired India's largest alcobev chain The Beer Cafe in an all-stock deal, leading to the pub chain becoming a fully owned subsidiary of the company.



The deal gave Bira 91 retail presence through Beer Cafe's 33 outlets, while the alcobev chain got access to the beer company's innovation pipeline and supply chain.

Jain said Bira 91's market share has more than doubled in the past two years, becoming the fourth-largest brewer in the country, and that the company is on track to double its revenue in the current financial year from 2020-21.

B9 Beverages reported revenues of Rs 428.2 crore in the year 2020-21, according to its regulatory filing.