In today’s Finshots, we tell you why Bira 91, the brand that once ruled India’s craft beer market, is slowly fizzling out… and whether it can be revived.

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The Story

Not having any experience in a field and still managing to ace it takes serious grit. And one person who pulled this off was Ankur Jain, the founder of Bira 91.

After selling his healthcare startup in New York, Jain returned to India in 2007. Eight years later, in 2015, he launched Bira 91 (we’ll just call it Bira from hereon). But those intervening years were far from idle. They were his training ground.

He realised that the Indian beer scene was dominated by Kingfisher Strong and Haywards — both heavy, bitter lagers. So, he began exploring how to shake things up.

The problem?

He knew nothing about the alcohol business.

To fix that, he flew to Flanders, Belgium, one of the world’s beer capitals, and began brewing his own. Europe had easy access to grains, yeast, and hops, and as the BBC once noted, Jain simply couldn’t find a brewery in India “good enough” back then. So for Bira, the early batches were brewed in Belgium, bottled, and imported to India. And thanks to its smooth, flavourful taste and fun branding, it stood out immediately. The first few batches flew off the shelves, giving Jain the confidence to shift production to Indore.

And just like that, India’s first “craft beer” was born.

Unlike the mass-produced stuff, craft beer is brewed in small batches, with room to play around with flavours and ingredients. It’s more personal, experimental, and in Bira’s case, exactly what the Indian beer scene was missing.

Bira became an instant hit with the urban crowd. Sales shot up from 1.5 lakh cases in its launch year to nearly 7 lakh by 2016. Investors soon joined the party. Japanese beer major Kirin Holdings and venture capital giant Peak XV Partners (formerly Sequoia Capital) poured in close to $450 million. By 2023, Bira had hit peak sales (of about ₹840 crores) and was crowned India’s favourite craft beer.

But just a few days ago, The Economic Times reported a sobering update. Bira’s auditors had “cast significant doubt about the group’s ability to continue as a going concern”. For the uninitiated, going concern is an accounting term that basically assumes a company will keep running smoothly, without shutting shop or going bankrupt anytime soon. But in Bira’s case, that assumption now looks shaky.

Because in FY24 alone, it reported a negative operating cash flow of ₹80 crores and losses worth ₹740 crore. Its short-term liabilities exceeded its short-term assets by ₹620 crore.

So what went wrong, you ask?

Well, if you’ve been following the news, you probably already know this. But here’s some brief context. Apparently, a simple name change threw Bira into chaos.

See, Bira is the brand name. But legally, the company was called B9 Beverages Private Limited. And as the brand became a hit, investors began lapping up its unlisted shares. Soon, the company was inching dangerously close to having over 200 shareholders — the legal limit for a private firm under the Companies Act. Cross that threshold, and you automatically become a public company.

So in 2023, B9 Beverages Private Limited had no choice but to convert into B9 Beverages Limited. (Now, don’t confuse this with a stock market listing. That’s a different ball game, although Bira was apparently eyeing an IPO around 2026.)

But the alcohol business in India isn’t easy, and regulations make it even tougher. Here, each state treats you as a separate entity. So when Bira dropped “Private” from its name, all hell broke loose. A name change meant reapplying for every permit, licence, and label, all from scratch. The process dragged on for nearly six months, stalling sales in key markets.

That hurt, especially since 40% of Bira’s sales came from just two states: Delhi and Andhra Pradesh. Coincidentally, a government change and liquor policy issues in both, made matters worse.

And when consumers can’t find their favourite beer for months, they simply move on. That’s exactly what happened with Bira. Sales slipped from 9 million cases in FY23 to about 6–7 million in FY24, dragging revenues and profits down with them. And losses soared to ₹740 crore that year — even higher than its ₹660 crore in revenue, marking a 22% drop from the previous year. It even had to write off inventories worth ₹80 crore.

Now, we know what you’re thinking. How could a company this big make such a rookie mistake without consulting legal experts? Honestly, we’re scratching our heads too, because there aren’t any clear answers. So it just seems as if the team did seek advice but wasn’t guided well, or maybe they simply made a hasty call.

Here’s the thing though. While everyone’s blaming the name change for Bira’s downfall, a story from The Ken suggests otherwise. It argues that the cracks began to appear much earlier — right when Bira shifted its brewing operations from Belgium to India.

Look, the ingredients used in Belgium such as the grain or even the water, were different from what was available in India. Naturally, the taste changed. Bira couldn’t quite maintain the same quality it first became famous for.

Then came the second problem. Instead of building its own brewery or opting for contract manufacturing, Bira leased a third-party one. Sure, it gave the company more control. They could oversee production firsthand and use their own ingredients, but that control came at a cost. The company had to staff the facility with its own workers, and shifting the entire supply chain from Belgium to India took nearly two years.

And even with big investors backing it, Bira didn’t seem to spend wisely. It splurged on promotions like becoming the official sponsor for ICC cricket tournaments for five years until 2023.

But the thing is, the alcohol business isn’t exactly forgiving. It doesn’t let you splurge and sit back with a beer in hand. It demands hefty working capital and runs on wafer-thin margins.

And once Bira opened the door to craft beer in India, competitors swooped in fast, like eagles circling fresh prey. There’s Simba, now winning global awards, Kati Patang, White Owl, White Rhino, Goa Brewing Company… the list keeps growing. And in such a crowded market, staying visible is everything. Because once you’re out of sight, you’re out of mind, and in this industry, that’s as good as being written off. Or at least, that’s what the reports seem to suggest.

Over 250 employees have reportedly petitioned Bira’s board and top investors, demanding a change at the top, specifically, the removal of founder Ankur Jain from the company’s management. Their letter pointed out “corporate governance failures, lack of transparency, delayed salaries and dues, vendor payment backlogs, and the company’s deteriorating financial health.”

So, can Bira bounce back?

Jain certainly thinks so. In a recent post, he said the company is working to fix payment delays and supply chain troubles by raising fresh capital, assuring everyone that Bira will emerge stronger.

But that won’t be easy. Just months ago, private equity giant BlackRock was reportedly in advanced talks to invest ₹500 crores in B9 Beverages through structured debt — money that would’ve helped buy out early investors like Peak XV Partners and Sofina. But after the chaos unfolded, BlackRock backed out.

Now, whether or not Bira manages to raise fresh capital, one thing is pretty obvious. It needs to seriously rethink how it plans things. Because if you’ve noticed through the story, most of its troubles boil down to poor planning and weak execution — from shifting its supply chain to India, to the ill-timed name change, to how it spent its money.

So maybe more than just capital, what Bira needs now is a reset. The management has to rebuild trust with employees, distributors, suppliers, and even state excise regulators. That means fixing relationships, paying dues, and bringing back a sense of stability.

It might also be time for some tough decisions such as a leadership shake-up, hiring external turnaround experts, and setting up stronger governance and internal controls. That could go a long way in restoring investor and public confidence.

Because that’s likely the only way Bira can re-enter its core markets, win back customers, and maybe, just maybe, reclaim its glory days.

Can it? That’s something only time will tell. Until then…

If this story gave you a quick taste of the troubles brewing at Bira, share it with your beer loving friends, family, or even random strangers on WhatsApp, LinkedIn, or X 🍻Teetotallers are also okay, as long as you spread the word. Plis.

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