Sleepy Owl, the Delhi-based cold brew coffee company, has raised Rs 35 million in seed funding from DSG Consumer Partners (DSGCP), India’s leading early stage consumer fund.
Founded in June 2016, Sleepy Owl pioneered the direct to consumer Cold Brew Box, offering a convenient way for consumers to enjoy fresh cold brew made using 100 percent Arabica coffee. Sleepy Owl directly sources the best Indian beans from plantations to offer the Indian consumer the freshest and most flavorful coffee at their convenience.
Cold Brewing is the process of steeping coffee in cold water and there is no application of external heat. The long brewing time, which is more than 21 hours at Sleepy Owl, instead of high temperatures results in a completely different flavor profile and the end product, is a coffee that is naturally sweet, less acidic and significantly less bitter. This can be served hot, chilled with ice, water, milk or as a part in any other customizable coffee-based beverage.
Deepak I. Shahdadpuri, Managing Director, DSG Consumer Partners commented, “We believe that cold brew coffee segment, with its rising popularity around the world, presents a great opportunity in the Indian Market. We are very impressed by Ashwajeet, Arman and Ajai and their clear vision for the brand, product and category. We look forward to working closely with the team to build this new category of cold brew coffee, bringing premium Indian coffee to customers in a convenient format.”
The company promises the joy of cold brew coffee customized to suit the palate of Indian consumers. Sleepy Owl’s distribution presence has expanded to all major cities with the recent launch of their Brew Packs available on order through their website.
The classic Brew Box is now available across modern trade formats such as Foodhall, Le Marche and Modern Bazaar among others in Delhi NCR. The company plans to use the funding to leverage their strong product development and manufacturing capabilities to expand their product portfolio and grow nationally to gain a share of the rapidly growing Indian retail coffee market, estimated at Rs 5,000 crore.
Sleepy Owl’s current focus is to capture the Delhi NCR market with their Cold Brew Box. Commenting on the expansion in their current portfolio, Ashwajeet Singh, Co-Founder, Sleepy Owl added, “We recently launched Brew Packs online which is our Brew-It-Yourself Cold Brew Coffee. It is available across the country. It is the most convenient, hassle free way to cold brew a delicious cup of coffee without dabbling with complex brewing equipment. We want to scale the Brew Packs and reach out to the consumers across the country.”
Over the past decade, the appeal for coffee has grown across the country, particularly in urban areas. Factors such as globalization, an expanding middle class, rising disposable incomes and changing lifestyle have all contributed to the increase in coffee consumption in the country.
According to Arman Sood, Co-Founder Sleepy Owl, “India is witnessing that with an increase in corporate culture in the metros, consumers face an unfavorable choice when it comes to caffeinated beverages – either drink a sugary milky tea or coffee or a carbonated beverage with sugars and chemicals. Sleepy Owl is helping redefine this particular caffeine consumption pattern in India by offering a cold brew coffee that is both naturally sweet and healthy.”
“We are thrilled to partner with DSG on our journey to caffeinate the nation. Our main focus for the coming year is to make additions to our 15,000 existing customer base by increasing SKUs, expanding retail presence and marketing. Proceeds from the round will help us streamline operations and expand production, to ensure that we deliver on our promise of excellent user experience to our customers” Ajai Thandi, Co-Founder Sleepy Owl, remarked on the fund utilization that the brand will undertake.
