MarieGold, Tiger biscuit maker Britannia expects half of its sales from rural markets; check details

The rural market is "very important" for Britannia, where the maker of Good Day, Marie Gold, and Tiger biscuits reported growth in double digits in the latest April-June quarter and is now amplifying reach through direct distribution to have a "continuous stream" of products being available in those far-flung markets, Berry added.

Britannia, which was an urban-centric company, now gets around 40% of its sales from rural markets, Berry said, adding that rural is now growing ahead of urban markets, and this trend is expected to continue.

"Our split between urban and rural was something like 75% and 25%. Now, we have gotten to a 60-40 split. It is still in favour of urban, but slowly, steadily, we have grown the rural markets much faster than the urban markets, and this will continue," Berry told PTI.

Ideally, Britannia should be "getting close to a 50-50 split" because there is "potential for consumption and distribution", and it would like to make sure that it becomes strong in the rural markets as well.

When asked about the time frame, Berry said, "Maybe 3 to 4 years."

According to Berry, now the rural consumer has absolutely the same aspirations as an urban consumer.

"They also want smartphones. They want to consume the best biscuits. Now, they might not consume it all the time, but these biscuits are still a part of their repertoire," Berry said.

Britannia operates in a category that has 100% penetration, and its products must be within arm's reach of consumers.

Stressing the need for expansion of the distribution reach, Berry said the company gets into several small markets, such as villages with less than 3,000 population, because of its brand strength and not because of being able to reach there.

What Britannia said on GST 2.0

Britannia, ahead of the GST Council meeting, had said a possible reduction of tax on food products under the proposed GST reforms could help increase consumption in the coming quarters, and the company will extend benefits to consumers.

Terming the rationalisation of GST and a good monsoon this year as "positive indicators", Varun Berry said he expects the demand situation to become better and much stronger in the coming quarters.

When asked whether the GST reduction would augur consumption, Berry said, "Definitely," as the food items are expected to move to 5 per cent and "positively impact" the consumption.

On being asked whether Britannia will pass on the benefits to consumers, Berry said, "Yes! Of course."

The GST Council on Wednesday, September 3, decided to reduce taxes on most of the common-use goods as part of the government's measure to boost consumer spending. The new structure GST, which comes into effect on September 22, will have two slabs of 5% and 18%, instead of the current four slabs of 5, 12, 18, and 28%.

Fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) products such as hair oil; food items such as biscuits and namkeens, among others; soap; face powders; shampoos; toothbrushes; and toothpaste have come under the lower slab of 5% from 18%.

Britannia Industries Q1 FY26 Results

Bakery food company Britannia Industries reported a 3% rise in consolidated net profit at ₹520.13 crore for the June quarter of FY26 (Q1FY26), helped by moderation in inflation and an uptick in consumption.

The company had logged a net profit of ₹504.88 crore in the June quarter a year ago, according to a regulatory filing from Britannia Industries.

Revenue from the sale of products was up 9.8% to ₹4,534.86 crore in the June quarter. Revenue from operations was higher by 8.75% to ₹4,622.22 crore.

Over the outlook, Berry said Britannia's focus will remain on sustaining a healthy growth trajectory while protecting margins amid a heightened competitive landscape across product categories.

"We aim to further reinforce our market leadership through continued investments in brand building and innovations," Berry said.