Wow! Momo to launch Cuppa Thupka and sauces in big packaged foods push

(Image: Facebook: Wow! Momo)

Quick service restaurant chain Wow! Momo is planning a big packaged foods push and aims to launch several new categories such as ‘Cuppa Thupka’ (noodles in soup), as well as sauces, while also expanding its frozen momo category. The company has hired a new CEO to head the segment and has raised an undisclosed sum in a Series D round to fund its FMCG ambitions.

Momos and thupka are considered to be part of Tibetan and Nepali cuisine.

“There is a lot more coming up in FMCG. Our sauces are very famous so we are coming up with a whole range of momos sauces and Chinese sauces. We have a product called Thupka, which is noodles with soup, and that is a very different product and a category in itself,” the company’s co-founder and CEO Sagar Daryani told Moneycontrol on the sidelines of RAI ReTechCon 2022.

The QSR player had ventured into the packaged foods category with the launch of frozen momos. It is now planning an expansion of the product to more platforms and new channels.

Wow! Momo’s entry into the noodles category will pit it directly against FMCG giants such as Nestle (Maggi) and ITC (YiPPee) and even Reliance Retail (Snactac), which has also announced big FMCG plans. The sauces category also has several popular brands such as Del Monte, Heinz Ketchup, Dr Oetker, Veeba Food etc.

Frozen momos and beyond

The company has established a plant to produce frozen momos in Okhla, New Delhi, with a capacity of about 2 lakh momos a day, as it gears up for the ‘big launch’.

“Last year, we launched only on BigBasket. We were not chasing a topline then and learned the trade in a year. We have invested in new machines, which we have imported from Japan and Taiwan,” said Daryani.

“Now, we are going online in a big way. You will see us on grocery delivery apps and also on supermarket shelves. By March next year, we will be present everywhere. Also, we have hired a new CEO, who was heading a Rs 200 crore topline frozen food business, to head this vertical,” he added.

The company is also employing automation at its plant to produce momos, which are easily transportable, and will be rolling out two package sizes of 10 and 20 momos.

Retail expansion

The company is also planning a retail expansion for its flagship brand Wow! Momo; a Chinese food brand, Wow! China; and chicken brand Wow! Chicken. Daryani said it would soon cross the 500-store milestone and plans to take the number of stores in the country to 650 by the end of this year.

“We are rapidly expanding and adding 20-25 stores every month,” he added.

Wow! Momo also has plans to expand its presence beyond tier I cities and launch more stores in smaller towns.

“We are only in 22 cities at the moment so we have a long headway. The real ‘Bharat’ is in tier II and III markets and we are looking at more store expansions in these regions,” said Daryani.

According to the co-founder, brands such as Domino’s Pizza, which sells in over 400 towns and cities, have set a benchmark for QSR players and shown the potential small towns hold as they become more aspirational.

Wow! Momo was founded in 2008 by Sagar Daryani and Binod Homagai. The company initially launched QSRs selling momos, but has of late ventured into other categories such as Chinese food.

The company raised series C funding (of $15 million) in September last year in a round led by Tree Line Investment Management. It was valued at Rs 1,225 crore during the last round of funding.