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Annapurna Swadisht (ASL), a Kolkata-based food and beverages company, reported an impressive 83.81 per cent surge in consolidated net profit for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2024. The net profit soared to Rs 13.13 crore, compared to Rs 7.14 crore in the previous fiscal year, driven by robust sales and heightened demand from rural and semi-urban markets.
The company's consolidated revenue from operations witnessed a significant increase of 65.43 per cent, reaching Rs 264.97 crore in FY24, up from Rs 160.17 crore in FY23. ASL's operating profit (EBITDA) saw a remarkable rise of nearly 108 per cent, amounting to Rs 28.13 crore in FY24, compared to Rs 13.54 crore in the previous year, with an EBITDA margin of 10.62 per cent, an improvement of 216 basis points from 8.46 per cent.
Shreeram Bagla, Managing Director of Annapurna Swadisht, attributed the higher margins to better economies of scale, entry into high-margin products, and normalising raw material prices. In H2FY24, the company’s revenue from operations grew by 41.54 per cent, reaching Rs 133.84 crore, compared to Rs 94.56 crore in H2FY23.
On a standalone basis, ASL's net profit surged by 99.15 per cent, amounting to Rs 14.22 crore in FY24, as against Rs 7.14 crore in FY23. Standalone revenue from operations increased by 65.43 per cent to Rs 264.97 crore in FY24, up from Rs 160.17 crore in the previous year.
“The year 2023-24 has been an exceptional year for Annapurna Swadisht as we have taken several key initiatives to strengthen our foothold in existing markets while adding new products to fortify our presence in the packaged food industry. Our foray into biscuits and noodles, and the recent acquisition of Arati branded mustard oil from R R Proteins and Agro Limited, are steps in this direction," Mr. Bagla said.
Expanding Capacities
ASL, which had a manufacturing capacity of 76 MTPD across its five owned units, has leased a facility in Tezpur, Assam. The plant, which began commercial production in April, will have a capacity of 125 tonnes per month, expected to generate an additional Rs 3 crore in monthly sales. The company has also secured a 6-acre plot in Tezpur for setting up a greenfield facility.
These facilities will help ASL expand its footprint in the northeastern markets, including Assam, Meghalaya, Arunachal Pradesh, Tripura, Nagaland, Mizoram, and Manipur. Bagla highlighted Assam as a potential growth driver in the coming quarters.
Annapurna Swadisht aims to increase its total manufacturing capacity from owned facilities to 100 MTPD by September 2024 by ramping up capacities in existing units. The company’s owned manufacturing units are located across West Bengal in Asansol, Siliguri, Gurap, and Dhulagarh, with additional leasing arrangements in Tezpur, Siliguri, and Mathura.
The expanded manufacturing base is expected to cater to the growing demand from rural and semi-urban markets, where most products are priced between Rs 5 and Rs 10. Bagla noted that rural demand for FMCG products, which had been subdued during the second and third quarters of FY24, showed signs of recovery in the fourth quarter due to favorable measures announced in the Interim Budget. He anticipates sustained demand growth driven by increased farmers' income and infrastructure spending.
“We aim to strengthen our presence in existing markets by enhancing our distribution footprint and rolling out more SKUs," Bagla added.
Annapurna Swadisht manufactures a range of snacks and beverages, offering nearly 77 SKUs across 10 categories, including fryums, extruded snacks, cakes, candies, sweets, namkeens, potato chips, ready-to-drink beverages, rusk, and noodles. The company's products are available at over 600,000 retail touchpoints, primarily in Tier III and Tier IV markets in Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Assam, Odisha, and Uttar Pradesh.
Listed on the NSE-SME platform since September 2022, ASL raised close to Rs 65.43 crore through a preferential issue of equity shares and warrants by September 2023.
