Bira 91, initially importing Hefeweizen-style beer from Belgium, transitioned to domestic brewing for cost efficiency and expanded its production across multiple third-party brewing facilities. The brand’s parent company, B9 Beverages, is preparing for a 2026 IPO and recently changed its name from B9 Beverages Private Ltd to B9 Beverages Ltd. This legal modification led to the mandatory re-registration of product labels, resulting in a temporary halt in sales for several months. Consequently, the company incurred an Rs 80 crore inventory write-off, increasing its FY24 losses by 68% and contributing to a net loss of Rs 748 crore.
Founder Ankur Jain explained the impact of the name change, stating, “Due to the name change, there was a 4-6 month cycle where we had to re-register labels and re-apply across states which resulted in literally no sales for several months despite demand for our products.” He also pointed to changes in policies and market access routes in Delhi NCR and Andhra Pradesh—key sales regions—as additional challenges. As a result, the company’s sales volume dropped to 6-7 million cases in FY24 from nine million in the previous fiscal year.
Market competition has also intensified, with microbreweries, craft beer brands, and global brewing giants introducing premium products in India. B9 Beverages’ sales for FY24 declined by 22% to Rs 638 crore, falling short of its total losses. The company’s auditor, in its latest annual report, highlighted concerns regarding “negative cash flow of Rs 84 crore and accumulated losses of Rs 1,904 crore,” noting that these figures raise “material uncertainty that may cast significant doubt about the group’s ability to continue as a going concern.”
Despite these setbacks, B9 Beverages remains optimistic, attributing the financial strain primarily to the one-time inventory write-off. “We had to write off Rs 80 crore worth of products due to the name change which amounted to Rs 80 crore one-time cost, directly impacting our profitability. However, growth is back since the third quarter, and we expect to make operating profit by next quarter and have enough scale and size to raise capital by 2026,” the company stated.
India’s beer market continues to attract domestic and global investments, driven by favorable demographics and rising disposable incomes. Several emerging brands, including Simba, BeeYoung, and Kati Patang, have entered the space, while major international brewers are expanding their presence. United Breweries has announced an Rs 750 crore investment in a new brewery in Uttar Pradesh—its first greenfield expansion in over a decade. Similarly, Carlsberg CEO Jacob Aarup-Andersen has outlined plans to boost investments in India by 2025, aiming to expand production capacity for the 2026 season.
Vinod Giri, Director General of the Brewers Association of India (BAI), emphasized the importance of maintaining the unique appeal of craft beer brands. “They complement the mainstream beer industry. But what these companies must bear in mind is that the appeal of a new different taste palate, whether wheat, dark lager, or craft is rooted in its uniqueness. So, their growth ambitions and expansion strategy should resist temptations of a quick scale up to become a mainstream product. That will just dilute the uniqueness of the product in consumers’ mind and would be neither here nor there. So they must follow a business model which balances investor expectations of quick returns with the rate of consumer accretion that the point of difference in the product naturally permits.”
As competition grows, Bira 91 and its parent company will need to navigate financial hurdles while preserving their brand identity to secure long-term growth in India’s evolving beer market.
