Ranveer Singh-backed Super You protein snack firm looks to bulk up, eyes ₹150 cr
The funding could help the protein snack firm achieve its ₹500-crore revenue goal in the next five years. According to co-founder Nikunj Biyani, the firm’s revenue is already close to ₹160 crore.
BENGALURU : Super You, the one-year-old functional foods snacking brand, co-founded by actor Ranveer Singh and Nikunj Biyani, is attracting attention from private investors who are looking to back startups offering innovative products in the burgeoning protein space.
The Mumbai-based startup is in late stage talks to secure as much as ₹150 crore in Series B funding from a clutch of new and existing investors, including DSG Consumer Partners, two people with direct knowledge told Mint. The round is expected to value the company at upwards of ₹500 crore, they said.
“It’s been around for only a year, but there’s so much interest. A big reason is that investors are looking for brands serving a lot more than the routine protein powders," said one of the persons quoted above, asking not to be named.
Super You’s co-founder Nikunj Biyani and DSG Consumer Partners declined to comment on Mint’s queries.
The development comes less than a year since the firm raised undisclosed Series A funding from Rainmatter Capital, the venture capital arm of fintech firm Zerodha. Part of private equity firm Everstone Group, DSG makes early-stage investments in consumer-facing brands in India and Southeast Asia.
The deal will also help DSG expand its food portfolio, after it had invested in several wellness-focused as well as indulgent snacking brands such as Epigamia, Bombay Sweet Shop parent Hunger Inc and farm-to-fork organic food brand Anveshan.
The investment could bolster Super You’s efforts to achieve its ₹500 crore revenue goal in the next five years. The firm’s revenue is already close to ₹160 crore, Biyani told Mint.
Founded in November 2024, Super You entered India’s crowded snacking market with a rather different product: a wafer biscuit loaded with 5-10 grams of protein, disrupting the biscuit industry as well as the wellness food segment. More recently, it introduced protein chips with 10 grams of protein.
“The beauty of the food industry right now is that both health and indulgence categories are booming. Very few people choose one over the other. Our wants and needs exist in cycles. The idea is to enable consumers to make better indulgent choices," said Biyani.
Biyani, the nephew of Future Group’s Kishore Biyani, ventured into building Super You after spending nearly a decade in the fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) space. He served as the business head of Future Consumer Ltd’s food vertical for about nine years until December 2022.
Fierce fight
As protein takes centre stage in the Indian diet, a new crop of startups is emerging to meet surging demand—with investors lining up to back what could be the next generation of consumer health brands.
The investor interest stems from a broader nutritional gap: India lags way behind other countries on protein consumption. In 2021, India’s daily per capita protein supply was 70.5 grams, well below China’s 124.6 grams and the US’s 124.3 grams, according to the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization. A 2024 survey by market research firm IMRB found that over 90% of Indians are unaware of their daily protein needs, and 73% of urban diets fall short on it.
India’s protein supplement market was valued at approximately $1.4 billion in 2024 and is projected to grow to $1.8 billion by 2029, according to Mordor Intelligence, a market intelligence and advisory firm.
However, scaling a food brand doesn’t come without challenges. For one, the Indian market is crowding with at least a dozen brands raising capital in the last two years. Super You’s Biyani said his company's plan to stand out in a crowded market is by owning its intellectual property with respect to product formulations and spending on marketing to build a brand that creates strong recall.
“We invest quite a bit on market research and do a mix of formal and informal work on consumer studies and interactions. In terms of marketing, about 20% of our total expenses goes there, and having Ranveer Singh on board helps," Biyani said.
Regulators are also stepping up scrutiny amid rising concerns about excessive and unmonitored consumption. On 9 May, Hyderabad-based National Institute of Nutrition (NIN), part of the Indian Council of Medical Research, reportedly issued advisories against using protein supplements solely for muscle building.
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