Blue Tokai Coffee Roasters, a homegrown coffee brand, on September 15 said that actress Deepika Padukone has invested in the company. While the company did not disclose the amount, it said Padukone’s fund infusion is part of the company’s extended Series B round where Blue Tokai raised $30 million in January.
Padukone has invested through her entity, Ka Enterprises and joins Blue Tokai’s existing investors like A91 Partners, Anicut Capital, 8i Ventures, DSP Blackrock, Negen Capital, Mauryan Capital and White Whale Ventures.
In January, Blue Tokai had said it will use the funds to scale the business and expand its global presence in specialty coffee markets. In addition, the company said it would also introduce new FMCG products.
“As someone who is immensely passionate about homegrown brands and deeply values authenticity and transparency, investing in Blue Tokai was an evident choice…we are thrilled to partner with them as they putting specialty coffee on the global map,” Deepika Padukone, Founder, Ka Enterprises said.
Padukone’s investments in Indian startups is wide ranging. From skincare company Eighty Two East to cab hailing startup, BluSmart, she has diversified her portfolio. Supertails, a petcare startup and Epigamia, a yogurt company are other startups Padukone has invested in.
“Ka Enterprises’…thorough understanding of the D2C space and strategic investments are a testament to their strong business acumen and we are excited to have them join us on our next phase of growth,” Matt Chitharanjan, Co-founder of Blue Tokai said.
The specialty coffee space has been heating up in recent years, with the entry of a number of domestic brands as well as international brands. Blue Tokai competes with Third Wave Coffee Roasters, Slay Coffee, Sleepy Owl Coffee, Hatti Kaapi, and other chains such as Cafe Coffee Day and Starbucks, among several others.
Founded in 2013 by Matt Chitharanjan and Namrata Asthana, Blue Tokai said it has four roasteries, over 80 physical outlets across major Indian cities and regions including Delhi NCR, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Chandigarh, Mohali and Pune, as well as international operations in Japan.
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