International Coffee Day: Five homegrown brands brewing success

In a world dominated by Starbucks, Nescafé, Tim Hortons, Costa Coffee, and Lavazza, India’s coffee landscape is witnessing a revolution. Players like Blue Tokai Coffee Roasters, Third Wave Coffee Roasters, Araku, and Subko Coffee Roasters are transforming how India perceives specialty coffee. The Indian coffee market was valued at $478 million in 2022, and is expected to reach $1,227.5 million by 2032, growing at a CAGR of 9,87%. 

However, beyond these established giants in the specialty coffee scene, a vibrant ecosystem is emerging, each with a unique story and mission. This International Coffee Day, SMB Story celebrates a new wave of homegrown brands that are carving out significant market share, fueled by innovation and a deep understanding of the Indian palate.

Rage Coffee 

Incepted in 2018, New Delhi-based Rage Coffee was founded by Bharat Sethi. The brand sources high-quality Arabica from across India and Ethiopia. It uses a proprietary crystallisation technology to produce vegan-friendly, vitamin-infused instant coffee in various flavours (Irish hazelnut, dark chocolate, mint, among others). 

The brand has a strong presence across Delhi-NCR, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Chennai, Pune, and Tier II cities through its network of retail partners, ecommerce (Flipkart, Amazon) and quick commerce (Blinkit, Instamart). According to media sources, it also has a significant offline presence in over 5,000 stores across India, including modern trade outlets and general trade stores. 

Rage Coffee is backed by the likes of Virat Kohli, Rannvijay Singh, Keiretsu Forum, Sixth Sense Ventures, and Refex Capital. Kohli owns 2.5% of Rage Coffee and also serves as its brand ambassador. In August 2024, GRM Overseas acquired a 44% stake in Rage Coffee. 

Sleepy Owl 

Founded in 2016 by Ajai Thandi, Arman Sood, and Ashwajeet Singh, New Delhi-based Sleepy Owl offers at-home and ready-to-drink coffee, hot brew bags, cold brew bottles, ground coffee, DIY kits and coffee merchandise. The brand was one of the first to introduce the at-home cold brew concept at scale to Indian consumers. 

Sleepy Owl sources Grade-A arabica beans from plantations in Chikmagalur, Karnataka. While the brand started as a D2C (direct-to-online) concept, it has, over the years, moved into modern trade and retail outlets (Foodhall, Modern Bazaar, Le Marche), with strong branding and presence across Indian cities. It also offers a subscription service.

Sleepy Owl has raised a total of $10.7 million so far, raising from investors like DSG Consumer Partners, Rukam Capital, and Dexter Capital. 

Country Bean Coffee

Founded by Aditi Somani Satnaliwala and Aneesh Satnaliwala in 2017, Kolkata-based Country Bean Coffee provides an accessible, cafe-like experience at home. Its product portfolio includes instant coffee in gourmet flavours like caramel, hazelnut, and strawberry cheesecake, among others. Besides coffee, they also offer frothers, drinkware and hot chocolate to enhance the coffee experience at home. 

Sourcing high-quality Arabica beans predominantly from Indian plantations, the brand has a strong online presence across India via its website, ecommerce and quick commerce platforms. And it relies on gourmet stores, supermarkets and specialty stores like Nature’s Basket and Foodhall, for its offline sales. As of FY2024, bootstrapped Country Bean’s revenue stood at Rs 1.2.5 crore.

Roastery Coffee 

Hyderabad-headquartered Roastery Coffee was founded by ex-Cafe Coffee Day barista Nishant Sinha in 2017. Its offerings include specialty coffee beans and blends, seasonal single estate coffee, and brew-at-home options. Roastery Coffee is famous for its trademarked offering—Cranberry Coffee. 

The brand has nine coffee houses in India, across Hyderabad, Kolkata, Delhi-NCR, Lucknow and Jaipur. Roaster Coffee House also became the first ever Indian coffee chain to open an outlet in Europe with its Helsinki, Finland outlet. The brand also sells beans, blends and ground coffee through its online store. 

Roastery Coffee saw significant revenue growth with a projected revenue of Rs 75 crore in FY2024, up from Rs 26 crore in FY2022. 

Nothing Before Coffee 

QSR chain Nothing Before Coffee (NBC) was founded by Shubham Bhandari, Akshay Kedia, Anand Jain, Ankesh Jain in 2017. The Jaipur-based brand is backed by Parth Ventures and SYL Investments. 

NCB bridges the gap between premium international chains and local street vendors by offering an affordable cafe experience. It sources its coffee from various plantations in South India. Beyond coffee, its menu also offers snacks, shakes and mocktails. 

The company has a footprint across 36 cities in 14 states, with over 103 stores in key locations such as Jaipur, Lucknow, Indore, Bhopal, Surat, Ahmedabad, Delhi, Jodhpur, and Pune. The brand continues to expand its presence, particularly in Tier II and III cities across Rajasthan, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, and Punjab.

NBC recently raised $2.3 million in its Pre-Series A funding round.