ITC Ltd said on Friday that it has acquired 39% stake in Sproutlife Foods Private Limited (SFPL), the company which owns Yoga Bar, for Rs 175 crore, nearly four months after announcing the deal.
"The Company has on 4th May, 2023 acquired 2,443 Equity Shares of Rs 10 each and 7,215 Compulsorily Convertible Preference Shares of Rs 10 each for an aggregate consideration of Rs 175 crore. With the aforesaid acquisition, the Company’s shareholding in Sproutlife aggregates 39.42% of its share capital on a fully diluted basis," said ITC in a stock exchange filing.
The co-founders of Yoga Bar claimed, in January, that this move will add to the competitive advantage of the Bengaluru-based start-up and take it to an annual run rate of over Rs 100 crore. Suhasini and Anindita Sampath Kumar said: “We are delighted to join hands with ITC in Yoga Bar’s next phase of growth. ITC has a long history of building world-class brands, leveraging its core competencies which encompass superior understanding of the consumer, strong backward linkages with agri supply chain and a deep and wide distribution network. We are delighted that ITC and Yoga Bar will work together to build one of the largest brands in the healthy foods space.”
This deal will help ITC augment its future-ready portfolio and enhance market presence in the ‘Good for You’ space which currently includes Aashirvaad Multi-Grain Atta, Aashirvaad Nature’s Super Foods, Farmlite range of biscuits, Sunfeast Protein Shake, B Natural Nutrilite ABC Beverage among others.
Yoga Bar was founded in 2014 by the sisters in a bid to give the Indian audience a snack brand which is healthy as well as filling. At present, Yoga Bar derives its sales majorly from its website as well as ecommerce platforms. However, it also has a few offline retail touchpoints.