Yu, an instant food and beverage brand, has raised ₹55 crore in its Series B funding round led by public market investor Ashish Kacholia and Asian Paints Promoter Group (Manish Choksi, Varun Vakil).
As part of this round, the company claimed to have provided an exit to some of its seed stage investors who have realised over a 4-fold return on their investment.
The funds will be used to ramp up distribution and strengthen its food portfolio while also expanding its beverage range with its newly unveiled 100% fruit juices.
In February this year, Yu raised ₹20 crore in a follow-up Series A round following the earlier funding of ₹20 crore in November 2022.
Sharing their excitement, Founders Bharat Bhalla and Varun Kapur jointly said, “It is extremely motivating to have raised significant growth capital that too from highly eminent investors. We greatly appreciate their support. Version 2.0 for Yu is now officially underway with the introduction of 100 per cent fruit juices – our second product category after instant foods.”
Founded by Bharat Bhalla and Varun Kapur, Yu started with instant cup noodles and pasta in 2021 and has since expanded to ready-to-cook noodles, pasta, as well as natural beverages – containing zero concentrates or added sugar.
Yu has developed an omni-channel distribution network with offline presence in over 7,500 stores across India. The brand is available pan-India on all quick-com (Blinkit, Swiggy Instamart and Zepto) and ecom channels (Amazon, Flipkart Grocery, Dmart Ready) as well as institutional segments (Akasa Air, SpiceJet).
Yu is expanding its footprint in South Africa, where its products are sold across 2,000 plus retail outlets. The brand has experienced robust growth, having sold more than 1 million units in September 2024 alone.
Some of Yu’s products like its 100% whole wheat noodles and 100% coconut water have already achieved break-out sales on several distribution platforms on the back of volumes higher than those of incumbent brands, claimed the company.
