DS Group eyes Rs 5,000-cr sales from confectionery biz

Homegrown FMCG firm Dharampal Satyapal Group is eyeing Rs 5,000 crore revenue in the next five years from its confectionery business having crossed the Rs 1,000-crore mark in 2023-24, according to a senior company official.

The group which has popular brands such as Pulse, Pass Pass, Rajnigandha Pearls, Chingles, Pulse Natkaare and LuvIt in its confectionery category, is looking to increase sales outlets to around 50 lakh in India in the next five years, up from 26 lakh at present. "Our confectionery division has grown by over 20 per cent in the last three years while the industry has grown at 9 per cent. We have crossed the Rs 1,000-crore sales turnover mark in 2023-24. We are aiming at Rs 5,000 crore in the next five years," Dharampal Satyapal (DS) Group Vice Chairman Rajiv Kumar told PTI. He further said the group plans to accelerate the confectionary business with a CAGR of approximately 30 per cent over the next 5 years through organic and inorganic growth. When asked about investments, he said for manufacturing there won't be much as it is outsourced to third parties across India. He, however, said the spends on advertising and promotions would be increased depending on requirements. The group had spent Rs 100 crore in FY24 on advertising for the confectionery category.

"We will be increasing our presence in South India. In the next year we will double our outlets to at least 50 lakh outlets from the current 26 lakh and the focus areas will be the tier II and III cities and rural markets," Kumar said. Currently, the company has a dominant position in North and East India, he said adding, "we are expanding presence in South and West India". In terms of growth drivers going ahead, he said the company will continue to maintain its leadership position in the Hard-boiled Candy (HBC) and Indian ethnic confectionery (IEC) segments, besides driving up new segments such as chocolate.

"Looking ahead, we aim to grow our presence in the chocolate segment while strategically expanding our leadership position in the Indian ethnic confectionery category with innovative products," Kumar said. As part of the group's sustainability initiative, he said DS Group is using over 800 electric vehicles in the distribution of confectionery products and will look to increase it further going forward.