The $25 million-deal will help the luxe chocolate brand to set up its own stores in 9 major cities across India and strengthen its omni-channel presence
Multi-brand cloud kitchen company Rebel Foods Pvt Ltd acquired a majority stake in luxury chocolate brand SMOOR. The deal valued SMOOR at $25 million and it is looking forward to growing three-fold in 2022-23. It is also planning to set up own physical stores in New Delhi, Mumbai, Pune, Chennai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Gurugram, Noida and Faridabad, besides strengthening its fast-growing omni-channel presence.
Set up in 2015, Bengaluru-based SMOOR is renowned for its couverture chocolates and finely-crafted desserts. The premium range of signature cakes, chocolates, macarons, baked products, gift hampers, beverages and desserts offered by this luxe brand are available in Signature Lounges, cafes, kiosks (in Bengaluru, Mumbai, Delhi NCR and Chennai currently), its own websites and other e-commerce aggregators like Amazon and Flipkart.
On the occasion, SMOOR Director-CEO Vimal Sharma said, “SMOOR has been growing at a scorching space While our early years were spent building the premium chocolate market, the last two years have been about growing. With a 140% growth last year & plans to grow 3x this year, we were looking for a strategic partner who would enable this scale up. In Rebel Foods, we found the perfect match. Our range fitted like a glove in their portfolio. Their cloud kitchen network & ability to grow F&B businesses was exactly what we need.”
Rebel Foods Co-Founder Raghav Joshi said, “This investment gives us further confidence that we have been able to consistently choose outstanding brands. Being an early adopter of the Thrasio model in food in India, we have disrupted 500 years old industry of the traditional restaurant business, by building a full-stack technology-enabled platform - Rebel Operating System. Our focus will continue to be on bringing great quality brands to every neighbourhood across food missions.”
Through its ‘Rebel Launcher’ programme, Rebel Foods is planning to bring onboard 40-50 food brands across categories like north and south Indian cuisines, Indian sweets and sandwiches in India this year. It is also intending to take its brands to its 10-country footprint – Singapore, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Philippines, the UAE and the UK.
Founded in 2011, this Mumbai-based Thrasio-style internet restaurant company presently operates over 25 own brands like Faasos, Behrouz Biryani, Ovenstory Pizza, Slay Coffee, Wendy’s Mandarin Oak, Sweet Trut, Mad Over Donuts and Holy Cow Curry Sauces (the UK). With a network of 4000-plus restaurants in 450 kitchens spread in more than 60 cities in 10 countries, Rebel Foods is serving more than 2 million customers now.
