Devyani Food to invest Rs 275 cr on 'Creambell' expansion

Firm has 15% share in Rs 3,500-cr Indian ice cream market, eyes 18% by 2020

RJ Corp group firm Devyani Food Industries will invest Rs 275 crore in three years on capacity enhancement and retail expansion of its ice cream brand 'Creambell' across the country.

The company, which at present has a share of 15 per cent in the estimated Rs 3,500-crore Indian ice cream market, is targeting to increase it to 18 per cent by 2020.

It will also enter new states after its recent foray into Gujarat, the largest ice cream market in India.

"The company has earmarked investments of Rs 275 crore over the next 3 years in capacity expansion, research and development and market activations (of Creambell)," Devyani Food Industries Chief Executive Officer Nitin Arora told PTI.

Creambell has three manufacturing plants in Baddi (Himachal Pradesh), Goa and Kosi Kalan (Uttar Pradesh) with a total capacity of 8.5 million litres per month.

The brand is gaining fast acceptance and the company is embarking on expanding across India to get a market share of 18 per cent by 2020, he added.

"Creambell has 15 per cent market share in the competitive ice cream segment... The ice-cream market in India is estimated at Rs 3,500 crore and Gujarat is the largest market," Arora said.

It competes with likes of Amul, Mother Dairy, Kwality Walls and Vadilal in the ice cream space.

Elaborating on the company's strategy, he said: "We will be focusing over the next five years to build a strong presence across Gujarat."

In the first phase the focus would be on Ahmedabad, the key ice cream market of Gujarat. Subsequently, it will be followed by expansion in Baroda, Rajkot, Surat and then rest of Gujarat, Arora said.

On expansion in other states, he said: "There is a limited presence in Tamil Naidu, which is currently at a soft launch stage. It will come up for a full-fledged launch over next 2-3 years. After firm hold in Tamil Nadu, Kerala will be the last bastion."

Beyond India, Arora said Creambell will also look at expanding overseas, mainly in Africa. It is increasing its presence gradually in countries like Uganda, Kenya, Zambia and Tanzania.