Kunal Bahl, co-founder of Snapdeal and Titan Capital, made one of the biggest investments ever in the fourth season of Shark Tank India. Bahl, the latest 'shark' in the tank, made a huge investment in health food brand Kiwi Kisan Window.
The brand's founders — a couple from Uttarakhand — said their brand brings regional specialties from across the country under one roof. When asked about the breakdown of their offline and online sales, they said 97 percent of their sales come from offline channels and currently only 3 percent from online channels.
During their pitch, the founders mentioned that they were trying to build their brand on the lines of US giant Trader Joe's. They also expressed interest in expanding their business' online presence.
To achieve this goal, they sought an investment of Rs 50 lakh per 1 percent equity swap, valuing the business at Rs 50 crore. They further predicted sales of Rs 10 crore for 2024.
Hearing this, Baal asked them why they wanted to expand online since Trader Joe's only sells through offline stores. Responding to this, the founders said they want to be where their customers are, citing Patanjali and Organic India as their rivals.
boAt's Aman Gupta offered the startups a deal — a Rs 50 lakh deal for 3 percent equity and 2 percent royalty until he doubles his principal investment. On this offer of Aman, Azhar Iqubal decided to take part.
That's when Baal decided to offer the founders of Kiwi Kisan Window a deal they couldn't refuse. “When I'm interested in a business, I go all in,” Ball said, making the offer.
He offered them a whopping deal of Rs 2.5 crore as a 10 percent equity swap, 5 times the amount the founders had originally asked for. The founders immediately agreed to the deal. While handing over the check to the founders, Kunal said: “I will help you become India's Trader Joe's.”
The founders also mentioned that they met each other through functional encounters and started the brand a few years ago. Among the top products that Kiwi Kisan Window sells through their physical stores are Kahwa from Kashmir, Spices from Kerala, Tea from Assam, Himalayan Ghee etc.
SUGAR Cosmetics' Vineeta Singh and OYO Rooms founder Ritesh Agarwal opted out of the deal. Vinita opined that the brand's numbers were too good to be true and scale could be a challenge.
Ritesh said they had very low volumes at the store level. Aman Gupta suggested the startups to focus on their branding and online.