Diageo backs India’s non-alcoholic drinks scene

Diageo’s Indian subsidiary United Spirits has bought a minority stake in a domestic non-alcoholic drinks start-up which produces Sober Gin, Sober Whiskey and Sober Rum.

United Spirits has bought a 15% stake in non-alcoholic drinks company V9 Beverages for Rs22.9m (£212,345).

The New Delhi-headquartered company was founded in 2020 with the aim of producing the first distilled non-alcoholic drink in India under its Sober brand.

Vansh Pahuja, V9 Beverages founder, told the drinks business this morning: “We are very excited to be part of Diageo’s portfolio and with this investment we hope to expand our global footprint using their strong distribution network and take our journey of India’s first non-alcoholic spirit to the world.”

United Spirits’ backing of India’s no and low sector is part of a series of “strategic minority investments” in domestic start-ups.

The Diageo-owned company, based in Bangalore, has also invested in Indie Brews and Spirits, which produces a cold-brew coffee liqueur. United Spirits now has a 25% stake in Indie Brew and Spirits for Rs50m (£463,503).

United Spirits is tapping into a growing trend for coffee liqueurs in the country with the new investment. A raft of new cold-brew coffee and spirit variants have hit the country, according to local reports, with more than 20 artisanal coffee brands already having launched in the past few years. Read more on the rise of Indian coffee liqueurs here.

Hina Nagarajan, MD and CEO of Diageo India confirmed that the board of directors has approved the investments in V9 Beverages Pvt Ltd (Sober) and Indie Brews & Spirits (Quaffine).

Nagarajan said the move was “in line with our strategy of exploring opportunities in new growth engines”.

These “strategic minority investments” allow the company to “experiment in the emerging consumer trends of the non-alcohol and coffee liqueur category, respectively”, she said.

“We will explore appropriate mechanism to enhance market reach of these brands and support in other areas of planning and business growth,” Nagarajan concluded.