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Oyo re-enters food biz with Townhouse Cafe QSR chain

EntrackrEntrackr · 3m ago
Oyo re-enters food biz with Townhouse Cafe QSR chain
Medial

Oyo re-enters food biz with Townhouse Cafe QSR chain Hospitality major Oyo has forayed into the quick-service restaurant (QSR) space with the launch of its in-house brand, Townhouse Cafe. These cafes will be rolled out across company-serviced hotels (Townhouse by Oyo). Oyo has piloted the model since January 2025, covering 100 hotels across India. Over the coming months, it plans to scale this up in phases, targeting an ambitious 1,500 hotels, as per the company’s press release. Guests can place food orders through Oyo’s app as well as partner OTAs. In addition to in-house kitchens, the company is rolling out QSR carts and lobby stores under the Townhouse Cafe brand to offer ready-to-eat meals. According to the release, OYO is building a network of food and beverage experts across Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Pune, Indore, Kolkata, Jaipur, and Lucknow to support its food service operations. While Oyo is yet to file its full FY25 financials, the IPO-bound company reported revenue of Rs 5,389 crore in FY24, slightly down from Rs 5,464 crore in FY23. However, a 16% reduction in expenses helped it post a net profit after tax (PAT) of Rs 230 crore for the year. The QSR venture seems to be part of Oyo’s broader push to boost revenue through allied services. This isn’t the company’s first foray into food — it launched a cloud kitchen business in 2019 but exited during the pandemic. While food operations are a natural extension of the hotel business, they require a distinct skill set and dedicated teams. Oyo likely gained valuable insights from its initial attempt and now appears better prepared to scale its food business in a more sustainable and strategic manner.

Eternal bets big on Blinkit as food delivery biz shows signs of slowdown

EntrackrEntrackr · 17d ago
Eternal bets big on Blinkit as food delivery biz shows signs of slowdown
Medial

Eternal bets big on Blinkit as food delivery biz shows signs of slowdown Eternal Ltd. (formerly Zomato) posted a strong Q1 FY26 with revenue surging 70% year-on-year to Rs 7,167 crore. However, growth in its core food delivery business appears to be flattening, with momentum now coming from newer verticals such as Blinkit and Hyperpure. The food delivery segment, once synonymous with Zomato, is beginning to show signs of maturity. Revenue from food grew just 16% year-on-year to Rs 2,261 crore, while Net Order Value (NOV) rose 13%, a slight dip from 14% in the previous quarter. Eternal’s chief executive officer (CEO) Deepinder Goyal acknowledged that “20%+ growth looks unlikely this year,” hinting that the post-COVID boom in food delivery may be tapering off as the business enters a slower growth phase. In contrast, quick commerce is rewriting Eternal’s growth story. Blinkit clocked a 127% YoY jump in NOV and a 154% spike in revenue to Rs 2,400 crore, overtaking food delivery for the first time on a full-quarter basis. The 10-minute delivery app now has 1,544 stores (243 added in Q1 alone) and plans to cross 2,000 by December. So, is India’s food delivery market reaching a saturation point? Goyal doesn’t explicitly say so, but signals are clear: while margins in food delivery are stable (5% of NOV), growth is slowing, and further upside is likely to come from operational efficiencies or adjacent offerings, not explosive user demand. Meanwhile, Blinkit is scaling rapidly, not just in metros, but even in smaller cities where profitability gaps are narrowing. “Margins seem to have bottomed out,” said Blinkit CEO Albinder Dhindsa, adding that select cities are already profitable. The business now has a strong line of sight to 5–6% margin in the long term, according to him. Interestingly, Eternal is now extending its “10-minute promise” to meals with its initiative called Bistro. The service currently runs 38 cloud kitchens across Delhi-NCR and Bengaluru, offering ‘high-quality yet affordable food’ in just 10 minutes. The company sees Bistro as a way to tap into unmet demand, particularly among users seeking low-cost, quick meals or snacky options, a segment it believes traditional food delivery players haven't fully addressed. Hyperpure, Eternal’s B2B restaurant supply business, also had a standout quarter with 89% YoY revenue growth. However, this growth may soften in upcoming quarters as Blinkit transitions from a marketplace to an inventory-led model, reducing Hyperpure’s exposure to non-restaurant clients. To navigate this shift, Eternal is also evolving its leadership structure. With the appointment of product leader Aditya Mangla as food delivery CEO, the company is doubling down on tech-first execution. Goyal calls this “rotational leadership”, a system meant to keep decision-making fresh and avoid long-term stagnation at the top. As Goyal puts it, “We want to build companies led by principles, not personalities.” The principle now seems clear: grow where the consumer moves fastest, and that’s not always dinner delivery. While churn has become a perennial feature at Eternal, both in terms of initiatives and even people, the firm continues to be valued (ridiculously so, many would say) highly for potential upsides on its other initiatives like District etc. However, the grocery business as the growth driver comes with its own challenges on the margin front, as seen in the profit shrinkage this quarter. Patient investors might also feel tested if they don't see either of two things in FY26: profitability in the delivery and grocery business, however low the margins, and a breakout in any of the remaining verticals like seen in Hyperpure.

Velocity earmarks Rs 200 Cr for restaurant and cloud kitchen brands

EntrackrEntrackr · 7m ago
Velocity earmarks Rs 200 Cr for restaurant and cloud kitchen brands
Medial

Cash-flow-based financing platform Velocity has earmarked Rs 200 crore in 2025 to support and accelerate growth in the restaurant and cloud kitchen ecosystem across India. The fund is designed to address the unique challenges faced by F&B brands and help them grow. It eliminates the hassles often encountered by F&B brands struggling to secure financing from traditional sources like banks and NBFCs. By offering cash-flow-based financing, Velocity enables restaurants and cloud kitchens to manage capital expenditure, working capital, open new outlets, purchase equipment, and launch sub-brands without impacting operational profits. As per a report by Swiggy and Bain & Company, India's food delivery and dining-out market is projected to grow from approximately $66 billion to $108 billion by 2030. According to Velocity, its fund aligns with this growth, focusing on empowering new-age restaurants and cloud kitchen brands, particularly those operating via food aggregator platforms like Zomato and Swiggy. The fund aims to support innovators in the space by offering fast, scalable, and flexible financing solutions, enabling F&B brands to seize emerging market opportunities, scale operations, and meet increasing consumer demand. Since 2020, Velocity has funded several F&B brands such as IDC Kitchen, Smoor, Daily Sushi, Brahma Brew Works, Milano Ice Cream, Imperio, Amore Gelato, Jamie's Pizza, and Baba's Chicken. These businesses utilized the funds to expand operations, strengthen supply chains, and enhance marketing efforts. India's F&B industry is undergoing a rapid transformation driven by quick commerce, cloud kitchens, and ultra-fast delivery models. Platforms like Zepto, Swiggy Instamart, and Blinkit have introduced 10-minute delivery services such as Zepto Cafe, Bolt, and Bistro. Bigbasket and Magicpin are also preparing to enter this space, while emerging players like Swish and Zing are gaining traction. Co-founded in 2020 by Abhiroop Medhekar, Atul Khichariya, and Saurav Swaroop, Velocity is a cash-flow-based financing platform for new-age businesses. It leverages digital-first businesses' data and online cash flows to offer innovative financing solutions. Velocity has disbursed over Rs 1,000 crore to more than 1,200 digital-first businesses, enabling them to overcome working capital challenges. The Bengaluru-based fintech has raised $30 million in equity funding led by Peter Thiel's Valar Ventures. Its portfolio includes D2C brands like Soulflower, Chumbak, and Off Duty.

Exclusive: Finnest invests $145 Mn to acquire majority stake in Kitchens@

EntrackrEntrackr · 1y ago
Exclusive: Finnest invests $145 Mn to acquire majority stake in Kitchens@
Medial

London-based private equity firm Finnest now holds a majority stake in Bengaluru-based cloud kitchen startup, Kitchens@. The board at Kitchens@ has passed a special resolution to issue 40,00,000 equity shares Rs 3,000 each to raise Rs 1,200 crore or $145 million, its regulatory filing sourced from the Registrar of Companies shows. The board also issued another 4,50,000 Series C CCPS at an issue price of Rs 3,000 amounting to Rs 135 crore. It is important to note that Kitchen@ has raised Rs 1,200 crore ($145 million) in the fresh round while the remaining Rs 135 crore ($16 million) is likely the tranche of a Finnest-led $65 million Series C round, which was announced in December last year. According to the filings, Finnest holds 53.75% of the shares in Kitchen@ after the new investment. This means Kitchens@ will become the subsidiary of Finnest Holdings. As per Fintrackr’s estimates, the company has been valued at around Rs 2,114 crore or $255 million post-allotment. ALSO READ: Decoding the financial health of leading cloud kitchen startups Founded in 2018, Kitchens@ provides turnkey solutions to F&B brands to expand their presence with end-to-end services, including infrastructure, technology, and operation services, among others. It works with multiple food brands including Domino’s, Subway, Taco Bell, Nando’s, ChicKing, and national chains such as ITC, Mainland China, and Barbeque Nation. In early 2023, Kitchens@ acquired Swiggy’s Access Kitchens business in a share swap deal. After the acquisition, Kitchens@ set a target to expand reach in four cities across 52 locations and over 700 kitchens. Kitchens@ demonstrated solid growth in FY23 as its revenue from operations grew 67% to Rs 62 crore in FY23 from Rs 37 crore in FY22. At the same time, its losses stood at Rs 27.3 crore in the same period. The company is yet to file annual results for FY24. It competes with Rebel Foods, Curefoods, EatClub, Biryani By Kilo, FreshMenu, Biryani Blues, Bigspoon, Dil Foods, Ghost Kitchens India and HOI Foods.

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