Popo Global, the Bengaluru-born company behind the gourmet food brands, The Pizza Bakery, Paris Panini and Smash Guys, has secured a significant minority investment of 532 Cr from Artal Asia.
The Rainmaker Group acted as the exclusive financial advisor on the transaction.
Founded in 2017 by brothers Nikhil Gupta and Abhijit 'AB' Gupta, Popo Global has, over the last decade, built one of India's leading gourmet food brands, powered by an unflinching obsession with quality, taste, and customer experience. Popo Global has built a uniquely scalable operating playbook built around beloved brands, hero product focus, strength across dine-in and delivery, standardised processes to maintain culinary excellence, and real estate expertise.
Popo Global combines the convenience of QSR, the trust of fine dining and the scalability of delivery kitchens and has delivered the highest SSSGs & repeat rates, the best unit economics in the category, emerging as a clear stand out in the F&B space. Popo's highly capital-efficient model and consumer love for each of its brand has enabled it to bootstrap its significant expansion in the Bangalore market. As Popo Global lays the groundwork to expand beyond Bangalore to fulfil its global potential, Artal Asia has become a significant minority investor in the business.
This transaction brings together Artal Asia, an affiliate of Artal Group whose global portfolio includes CAVA (NYSE: CAVA), the leading mediterranean fast-casual brand in the United States and whose India investments include Capital Foods, backed for over a decade before its 5,100cr acquisition by Tata Consumer Products; and now Popo Global.
On the partnership with Popo Global, Lee Swee Yin, Director at Artal Asia, said “Our mission is to empower exceptional entrepreneurs to transform their industries. We are proud to support Popo Global in continuing their customer and product obsession at greater scale.”
“Raising private equity is as much about finding the right partner as it is about the capital itself, and TRMG delivered on both fronts. Avijit, KP, Chirag, Saurabh, Mitali and Kabir took the time to genuinely understand Popo's business, our unit economics, and where we are headed, not just what looked good on a deck. Through a long and often unpredictable process, they stayed sharp on the details while never losing sight of the bigger picture, pushing hard when it mattered and keeping us calm through the tougher stretches. Their network, judgement and experience were instrumental in getting this round across the line on terms that felt right for us. What stood out the most was that at no point did it feel transactional..it felt like we had extra people on our own team, fully invested in Popo's success.” said AB Gupta, co-founder and CEO, Popo Global.
Avijit Goel, Partner, The Rainmaker Group said, “With Artal Asia's patient capital and global operating expertise, this fundamentally well-run, Bangalore-born company is well-positioned to become India's most-loved restaurant business.”
About Popo Global
POPO Global is the company behind the gourmet food brands such as The Pizza Bakery, Paris Panini and Smash Guys. Built around a distinctive playbook with a hero product focus and a leading digital presence - the company is building a portfolio of differentiated brands designed to become everyday favourites for India's modern, quality-conscious consumer.
About The Rainmaker Group
The Rainmaker Group is the investment banking partner of choice for India’s private businesses as they traverse their fundraising journey - from their first growth round to pre-IPO. The firm has delivered growth equity and secondary transaction milestones for over a dozen unicorns, soonicorns, and now-listed businesses.
The firm’s ‘rainmakers’ pride themselves on a founder-like mindset and a proprietary execution process that has delivered industry-leading closure rate and client retention. The Rainmaker Group’s relationship with global investors is underpinned by thoughtful client selection and an insight-driven approach to dealmaking.
To know more about The Rainmaker Group, get in touch with
Dhwani Mehta - dhwani.mehta@trmg.in
