Bengaluru: Premium liquor brands continued to fuel growth at Radico Khaitan, with the spirits maker reporting a 76% year-on-year jump in net profit to Rs 230 crore in the June quarter, helped by robust demand for its premium portfolio and easing input costs. Net profit stood at Rs 131 crore in the year-ago period.Total income rose 10% to Rs 5,869 crore from Rs 5,315 crore a year earlier. The maker of Magic Moments vodka and Rampur Indian Single Malt said a richer product mix, coupled with lower raw material costs, drove the sharp improvement in profitability.Overall liquor volumes grew 2.8% to 10 million cases. However, volumes in the company’s Prestige & Above portfolio surged nearly 36% to 5.22 million cases, while revenue from the segment rose 36% to Rs 970 crore.Premium brands accounted for nearly 77% of the company’s Indian-made foreign liquor (IMFL) revenue during the quarter, up from about 67% a year earlier. By contrast, volumes of regular and lower-priced brands declined 15%, reflecting the company’s continued premiumisation strategy.Radico attributed the decline in regular-brand volumes to a high base in Andhra Pradesh and policy changes in Maharashtra and Karnataka, adding that strong growth in premium brands more than offset the impact.Vodka emerged as one of the fastest-growing categories, with Magic Moments posting 43% volume growth. Vodka’s share of the domestic spirits market increased to 6.1% from 4.6% a year earlier, driven by younger consumers and the growing popularity of cocktails.“Our premiumisation strategy continues to deliver strong results,” managing director Abhishek Khaitan said.The company has raised its FY27 guidance for Prestige & Above volume growth to more than 25% and expects its EBITDA margin to remain around 20% for the year.Radico also reduced its net debt by Rs 138 crore during the quarter to Rs 106 crore and expects to become net debt-free in the Sept quarter. The company said margins improved despite volatility in packaging material prices, which had an estimated impact of around Rs 30 crore during the period.
