Blue Tokai Raises $35 Mn From Verlinvest, Others To Bolster Offline Play

Speciality coffee chain Blue Tokai Coffee Roasters has raised $35 Mn (about INR 293 Cr) in its Series C funding round led by Belgian investment firm Verlinvest.

The round also saw participation from existing investors Anicut Capital and A91 Partners. Following the funding round, the startup is valued at about INR 1,500 Cr (around $179 Mn).

Blue Tokai plans to utilise the fresh funds to deepen its presence in existing metro cities and expand its footprint to new Tier I & II cities over next three years. The capital will also be deployed to drive “product innovation” and branch out into new channels.

In a statement, VerlInvest said that the funds will be used to expand Blue Tokai’s presence to over 350 locations in the next 30 to 36 months.

“… We will utilise these funds to accelerate our expansion across all channels – from our own cafes to B2B and B2C platforms… Our focus remains to providing exceptional coffee experiences while fostering sustainable growth,” said Blue Tokai cofounder and CEO Matt Chitharanjan.

Meanwhile, cofounder and chief operating officer (COO) Shivam Shahi said that the funds will enable the startup to accelerate expansion plans and “drive profitability” while maintaining product quality. Claiming that Blue Tokai has been experiencing a significant surge in demand, Shahi said that the startup has been “steadily” adding five cafes to its kitty every month for over a year now. 

Founded in 2013 by Chitharanjan, Shahi and Namrata Asthana, Blue Tokai operates four roasteries and over 80 physical outlets across Delhi NCR, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, among others. It also has an outlet in Tokyo, Japan. 

On the B2B front, Blue Tokai has partnerships with different retail outlets, luxury hotels, restaurants, corporates, coworking spaces, among others. 

The startup competes with the likes of legacy as well as new-age brands such as Café Coffee Day, Third Wave Coffee and global giant Starbucks.

The fresh fundraise comes months after ex-Reckitt Benckiser executive Rakesh Kapoor’s fund 12 Flags Group picked up a stake in the coffee chain for an undisclosed amount.

Last year, Blue Tokai also bagged funding from Deepika Padukone as part of its $30 Mn Series B funding round led by A91 Partners.

This comes at a time when startups in the food and beverage (F&B) sector are witnessing renewed interest from investors on the back of growing disposable income in the country.

In March this year, Subko Coffee Roasters raised $10 Mn in its Series B funding round led by Zerodha cofounder Nikhil Kamath. Another specialty coffee brand abCoffee also picked up $3.4 Mn in a round led by Nexus Venture Partners in March itself. 

Meanwhile, Bengaluru-based brand Third Wave Coffee also secured $35 Mn in a Series C funding round led by private equity (PE) firm Creaegis at a valuation of $150 Mn in September last year.