Bira's Costly Rebranding: How a Name Change Led to Rs. 80 Crore Loss

B9 Beverages, the maker of Bira 91 beer, faced significant financial setbacks after dropping the word "Private" from its company name. The change required re-registration of product labels across states, resulting in a sales halt for 4-6 months. This led to an Rs. 80 crore inventory write-off and a 68% increase in losses for FY24. Sales fell from 9 million cases in FY23 to 6-7 million in FY24. The company's net loss reached Rs. 748 crore, surpassing its total sales of Rs. 638 crore. Despite these challenges, Bira remains optimistic about future growth as it prepares for its 2026 IPO.

 

Source: The Economic Times