India’s spirits and beer companies are increasingly focusing on premium brands to sustain growth, with Radico Khaitan and United Spirits leading the charge despite rising input costs and supply chain disruptions.
Premiumisation remained the main engine of growth for India’s spirits and beer makers in the June quarter, with higher-end brands helping several companies lift sales even as input costs, policy shifts in some states and wider disruption in supply chains continued to pressure earnings.
Radico Khaitan emerged as one of the clearest beneficiaries of the trend. The company reported its strongest ever quarterly volume, revenue and profit, with consolidated net profit rising 76% to ₹229.60 crore and revenue climbing 13.22% to ₹5,867.69 crore. Business Standard said the Prestige and Above portfolio, which includes brands such as Rampur Single Malt Whisky, Jaisalmer Indian Craft Gin and Royal Ranthambore, expanded 35.8% to 5.22 million cases. Managing Director Abhishek Khaitan said the group’s premium strategy was driving performance and expected the premium portfolio to keep growing at more than 25% in FY27.
United Spirits, the Diageo-controlled liquor maker behind Johnnie Walker, Black Dog and Smirnoff, also leaned on premium brands to offset weaker categories. The company posted a 51.6% rise in net profit to ₹391 crore and a 5% increase in revenue from operations to ₹6,113 crore. According to the company’s investor call, premium volume growth reached 6.4% after stripping out Maharashtra, while net sales value in the same category rose 14.8%. By contrast, the popular segment, which contributes less than 10% of revenue, saw net sales value fall 17.5% to ₹206 crore.
United Breweries reported a more mixed picture. While consolidated net profit fell 9.64% to ₹166.28 crore because of higher expenses and the impact of the West Asia conflict, revenue rose 10% to ₹5,919.44 crore. The brewer said premium volumes advanced 17%, excluding two states where it took steps to reduce the war-related impact, led by Heineken Silver and Kingfisher Ultra. Chief financial officer Jorn Kersten said premium margins had become accretive for the first time in the quarter, suggesting the segment is now contributing more directly to profitability.
Among other players, Allied Blenders and Distillers posted a 18.65% decline in consolidated net profit to ₹45.42 crore, even as revenue rose 5.8% to ₹984 crore and premium brands accounted for a larger share of sales value. The company said global supply chain disruptions affected the quarter but reiterated that premiumisation and backward integration remained central to its strategy. Tilaknagar Industries delivered the sharpest revenue growth, with sales jumping 165.4% to ₹2,252.42 crore after the Imperial Blue acquisition from Pernod Ricard India, though profit was hit by integration-related exceptional costs. Wine maker Sula Vineyards also returned to growth, with net revenue from operations up 3% to ₹112.9 crore, helped by strong demand for The Source and Rasa.
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