October 16, 2024 - Bakery chain Theobroma is close to a groundbreaking deal which could make it the country’s biggest cash exit. Theobroma is reportedly in the final stages of being bought over for a staggering valuation of Rs 3,500 crore. If the deal goes through, the owners could make a whopping Rs 1,000 crore in cash. 

Sources say ChrysCapital is close to acquiring Theobroma Foods and Belgian Waffle Co for a total valuation of around Rs 3,200-3,500 crore.

Taking off in a one-room outlet in 2004 by sisters Tina Kainaz Messman Harchandrai and Tina Messman Wykes 2, Theobroma today is a chain with 225 outlets across 30 cities of India and well on track to hit revenue mark of Rs 600 crores. Famous for its chocolate brownies, the 20-year-old patisserie chain has a cult-like popularity across the country.

When the sisters decided to move out from their home-baking into the city their father was their first investor with Rs 1.5 crore. In this rags-to-riches story, Theobroma struggled for almost a decade to find investors. Without funding expansion was not possible. And it wasn’t until 2014 that the founders managed to secure their first loan of Rs 5 crore, which allowed them to expand beyond their initial single outlet. 

The bakery began exploring a sale process in January after its private equity investor, ICICI Venture, decided to exit. Both the founder-owners and ICICI Venture, which holds a 42% stake in Theobroma, intend to sell their entire shareholding as part of the deal. ICICI could make Rs 1,600 crore on a Rs 120 crore investment. 

If Theobroma’s proposed deal achieves its target valuation, it could beat all earlier  records and potentially set a new benchmark for cash exits by founders in India.