WickedGud Bags INR 20 Cr To Deepen Omnichannel Play

SUMMARY

The F&B brand saw investments from existing backers Orios Venture Partners and Asiana Fund along with new individual investors
It had earlier raised INR 20 Cr last December, and INR 6 Cr in 2023
The brand specialises in instant noodles and pasta, aiming to introduce new product formats

D2C food products startup WickedGud has raised INR 20 Cr ($2.2 Mn) in a fresh funding round from existing backers including actor Shilpa Shetty, Orios Venture Partners and Asiana Fund.

New investors include Shajikumar Devakar (cofounder, Neo Asset Management), Sonika Ravula (general partner, Optional Gravity) and Rahul Caloca (CEO, Fraser & Neave), also participated in the round.

It intends to utilise the fresh capital to deepen its omnichannel play by expanding its presence across modern trade, general trade and digital platforms. It also intends to strengthen supply chain and backend capabilities as well as bring forth new products in categories like cup noodles and Korean-style spicy noodles.

Founded in 2021 by Bhuman Dani, WickedGud offers ready-to-cook (RTC) products like instant noodles, pasta and chips. It claims that its products are made without the use of maida and palm oil, positioning itself as a “healthy” alternative to traditional offerings in the instant food segment, without a premium price tag.

WickedGud’s products are currently available across quick commerce platforms like Blinkit, Zepto, Instamart and ecommerce platforms like Amazon, Flipkart. On the retail front, the startup claims that its products are present in 5,000 stores of retail chains like Reliance Smart Bazaar and DMart.

Important to mention that WickedGud raised a similar cheque from the same list of investors in December 2024. Since then, the startup claims to have seen a 3X spike in its revenue.

While WickedGud claims to have seen a healthy uptick in its sales in recent times, it must be mentioned that the competitive intensity in the RTC market has also deepened in recent times. In this category, it faces competition from traditional brands like Maggi, Nissin and Wai Wai as well as new age brands like Yu, WokTok and Master Chow, among others.

While the segment has been dominated by legacy players for decades now, a broader trend of challenger brands building their market share in such congested categories has emerged in recent times. Over the past decade, Indian D2C startups have steadily entered categories long dominated by FMCG incumbents.

Reflecting this shift, nearly two-thirds of all acquisitions by large consumer goods companies over the past five years have been in the D2C space, according to Crisil Ratings.

Within this, food and beverages has emerged as one of the most active segments, with the market projected to reach $68 Mn by 2030, growing at a CAGR of 22% between 2022 and 2030, as per Inc42.