Sula Wines, owned by India?s wine company Nashik Vintners, expects to clock Rs 100-crore revenue by the end of March on the back of strong demand and a 35% growth in revenues year-on-year. The company is in a good position to raise funds and is targeting around Rs 25-30 crore via private equity infusion for the expansion of its existing facility.
According to Rajeev Samant, founder & chief executive officer, Sula Wines, the wine market in India is at a nascent stage and would be around 8 lakh cases in a year. In terms of value, it is around Rs 350-400 crore. Samant claims Sula is a market leader, producing around 3.8 lakh cases. The other leading players are Indage Vintners and United Spirits.
Sula reported a volume growth of around 70% in the first half of 2010. ?We hope to book a good growth this year. Even though the volume growth is around 70% during the year, the value growth picks up during the festive season when the demand for premium brands is on a high. Hence, by the end of the year, the value and volume growth should even out,? Samant said.
With a mix of domestically produced and imported wines in its portfolio, Sula introduces two-three new products every year. While the price points range from Rs 125, going all the way to Rs 1,000 for the domestically produced brands such as Sauvignon Blanc, Chenin Blanc, Zinfandel and Riesling, the imported brands go up till Rs 2 lakh a bottle.
The company is in a growth phase and in a good position to raise funds. ?We plan to expand our current facility, along with setting up more facilities. For that, we have a capital requirement of around Rs 25-30 crore, which would come from private equity. We are in talks with certain firms but it would be unfair to disclose the names,? said Samant.
Till three years ago, the lowest price point in Sula?s portfolio was Rs 300 and at present the fastest growing brand is in the Rs 200-category leading to increased revenues and potential reach. In fact, it is expanding reach to tier-II cities like Chhattisgarh, Orissa and Jammu & Kashmir. It has 65-70 distributors around the country and exports wines internationally, as well as import and distribute wines from leading producers worldwide from countries like Australia, South Africa, Argentina and New Zealand, France, Portugal and Italy. Presently, less than 10% of the business comes from exports for Sula.