Adani Wilmar bets big on branded food, foresees major revenue boost

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Adani Wilmar is betting big on its food and FMCG portfolio and expects it to contribute a higher share of its overall revenues. The company is also ramping its direct distribution across rural and urban regions.

Angshu Mallick, MD & CEO of Adani Wilmar, told businessline, “ Our food portfolio is growing at a faster clip compared to the edible oil portfolio. Currently, the food segment contributes about 20 per cent share to the company’s total volumes. We expect it to grow its share to almost 40 per cent in the next 3-4 years.”

The food segment includes products such as wheat flour, rice, pulses, besan, sugar, and poha, among others. “ This basket of essential staples presents a huge opportunity for us for future growth. As more and more consumers shift from branded segments to unbranded segment, we expect to see our branded play become bigger. So we believe Fortune will become a bigger brand in the future,” he added.

When asked about inorganic growth strategies, Mallick stated that the company remains open to acquisitions and inorganic growth opportunities. “ We are a big volume player. So, if we get proposals, we evaluate and see whether they fit both in terms of our strategies and also culturally,” he added.

Direct distribution expansion

He discussed plans to ramp up direct distribution and explained that the company currently covers over 650,000 outlets directly. “Our aim is to take our direct distribution coverage to one million outlets by FY26. We want to grow our direct coverage to at least 200,000 outlets by next fiscal year’s end,” Mallick added. The company’s overall coverage, which includes indirect, reaches about 1.6-1.7 million outlets on a monthly basis and can be as high as 2.1 million outlets on a quarterly basis.

The company has been sharply focusing on growing its rural coverage. In January, it stated that it is on track to more than double its rural towns coverage from nearly 13,000 to over 30,000 by the end of this financial year.

Mallick said the company is bullish on the macro-economic factors regarding India’s GDP growth, investment climate and the country’s consumption story. “ Education and income is leading to consumer’s shift towards branded products as well healthier products,” he added.