B9 Beverages Ltd., the company behind the popular craft beer brand Bira 91, suffered an ₹80 crore loss in unsold inventory and had to halt sales for several months due to legal and registration issues stemming from a name change.
The company removed “Private” from its name—changing from B9 Beverages Private Ltd. to B9 Beverages Ltd.—as part of preparations for a planned IPO in 2026. However, this seemingly minor change led to significant complications, requiring the re-registration of product labels across multiple states.
The process, which took 4–6 months, forced the company to pause sales despite sustained demand.
As a result, Bira 91’s revenue dropped by 22%, while its losses surged by 68% in the financial year 2023-24. The company ended the year with a net loss of ₹748 crore against a total revenue of ₹638 crore.
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Founder and CEO Ankur Jain acknowledged the impact, stating,
“Due to the name change, there was a 4–6-month cycle where we had to re-register labels and re-apply across states, resulting in literally no sales for several months despite demand for our products.”
Looking ahead, Bira 91 is gearing up for its IPO to fund future growth, especially as competition intensifies in India’s beer market.
Microbreweries, craft brands like Simba, and global brewers are expanding their premium offerings. In 2023, the beer industry contributed ₹92,324 crore to India’s economy.
Founded nearly a decade ago, Bira 91 initially imported beer from Belgium before shifting to domestic brewing to reduce costs.
Today, the brand operates through a network of six partner breweries across the country.
