Toffee Coffee Roasters has raised Rs. 5 Crore in Pre-series A round led by IPV. The round also saw participation from 66 bridge partners, Abhijit Vemuganti, and Invesst as well. The startup will utilize close to 60% of the funds as working capital for the fast-expanding operations of the company. Of the remaining funds, approximately 10-15% is planned to be invested in enhancing and expanding the backend roastery. Another 10%, to be used for improving packaging quality, and the rest 10-15% of the capital will be dedicated to new product development, as the brand continues to expand its portfolio.
Toffee Coffee Roasters has been featured on Shark Tank India and also has the backing of the visionary investor Ritesh Agarwal, CEO of OYO Rooms. It has grown to become one of the top five coffee websites in the country based on online traction and currently holds around 1-2% market share in the overall coffee category.
Mitesh Shah, Co-founder, IP, says, “Despite India being one of the world’s leading producers of coffee, most coffee lovers still turn to expensive imported coffee or café-only specialty brews for good quality artisanal coffee. On the other hand the at-home coffee market is dominated by instant coffee, leaving little space for true specialty roasts. Toffee bridges this gap by offering high-quality, crafted, artisanal coffee that brings global-style coffee experiences to every Indian home.”
The company focuses on sourcing, roasting, and blending some of the finest coffees from around the world. The company has a lean supply chain, cutting middlemen to ensure better quality at the right price for the customer. All its blends are in-house creations supported by a team that includes India’s top Q Graders and experienced master blenders. The team has a thorough understanding of different sub-categories of coffee and has created products that rank amongst the best in major marketplaces. This is supported by a high-calibre talent-pool from IIT backgrounds and experience at brands like Zomato and Starbucks.
Toffee Coffee Roasters is led by Rishabh Nigam and Nandini Shrivastava, who bring a fine blend of complementary strengths to the team. Rishabh has over six years of experience in growth roles at consumer internet companies like ZEE5, Pocket FM, and upGrad, and was part of Pocket FM’s US team that scaled revenues from zero to USD 15 million in a year. Nandini, who previously worked with JSW before joining TCR full-time, heads product and operations, driving alliances, process improvements, and innovation across the portfolio. Together, they have grown TCR to serve more than 150,000 coffee drinkers in India with a diverse range of specialty coffees, while steering the brand toward its next phase of scale.
Toffee Coffee Roasters currently produces more than 5 tonnes of coffee every month, and over 40,000 units are consumed monthly. This adds up to roughly 3-4 lakh cups of coffee made at home across the country. The company now aims to scale production to 50 tonnes a month, a level that would support ₹8-10 crore in annualised revenue and place its coffee in the hands of 8-10 lakh customers who choose it as their daily brew.
Nandini Shrivastava, Co-founder & COO, Toffee Coffee Roasters, adds, “India’s coffee landscape is evolving faster than ever, yet a large gap remains between mass and premium offerings. As coffee consumption grows across formats from roasted and ground to cold brews and capsules, our aim is to build a mass-premium brand that brings high-quality coffee to both at-home and out-of-home consumers at an accessible price. We believe India deserves a coffee revolution that serves not just metros, but the wider India 1 and India 2 audience, and we are committed to leading that shift”.
