Foodtech Startup iD Fresh Food Grants ESOPs Worth INR 46 Cr To 27 Employees

Foodtech startup iD Fresh Food has announced its seventh round of Employee Stock Option Plan (ESOP) worth INR 46 Cr for 27 employees, including a driver and helper. 

The startup has so far granted over INR 300 Cr worth ESOPs to employees across multiple divisions. Of this, 54% of ESOPs have been offered to the junior management, it said in a statement.

“During the tough times, our salary payments were delayed by six months, nevertheless, our committed team continued to support us during those days. Our aspiration is to help create a minimum of 100 millionaires in the next three years by offering high-value shares at INR 10 apiece and attract the best talent from the market and retain the existing ones,” iD Fresh cofounder PC Musthafa said.  

The Bengaluru-based startup, founded in 2005 by Musthafa, Abdul Nazer, Shamsudeen TK, Jafar, and Noushad TA, sells ready-to-make food such as dosa and idli batter, rice rava idli batter, among others, in domestic and international markets. 

In January this year, it raised $68 Mn in its Series D funding round from NewQuest Capital Partner and Premji Invest.

“In the coming months, we are excited to augment our 2,000+ workforce as we explore new markets and continue to create new opportunities for a diverse set of professionals, while actively creating a more inclusive workplace,” Musthafa said. 

iD Fresh aims to expand into new markets, develop its products, and grow its capacity to cater to the growing demand. 

The startup manages over 30,000 retail outlets across India, the UAE, and the US. It clocked revenue of INR 500 Cr in financial year 2021-22, according to the statement. 

iD Fresh competes with foodtech startups like Happilo, True Elements and The Whole Truth.

Other ESOP Deals Of Indian Startups

Granting of ESOPs has become very common in the Indian startup ecosystem, as the startups look to attract and retain talent.

Recently, foodtech unicorn Swiggy announced an ESOP liquidity program under which close to 900 employees would be eligible to get liquidity up to $23 Mn. 

In May, Paytm’s parent One97 Communications granted ESOPs worth INR  220.7 Cr to its employees. It granted 39,70,721 stock options at a price of INR 9 per share. During the same month, fintech unicorn Oxyzo launched a new ESOP pool worth about INR 380 Cr. 

According to an Inc42 analysis, Indian startups, like RazorPay, Pine Labs and Rebel Foods, had bought back over $159 Mn of ESOPs up to May 2021.

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