FMCG major DS Group’s Pulse has become a ₹750-crore candy brand in FY25, making the company one of the fastest growing confectionery players in the country. The company expects the brand to grow its sales to ₹1,000 crore in the next two years. The company next aims to extend the brand across multi-formats as well as in adjacent categories besides expanding the brand’s presence in international territories.
Overall, DS Group closed FY25 with revenues of ₹10,000 crore.
Rajiv Kumar, Vice Chairman, DS Group toldbusinessline, “Over the last three fiscal year, Pulse candy recorded a CAGR growth of 15 per cent outpacing the industry growth rate. The hard-boiled candy segment has been growing at 9 per cent. Market data estimates suggest that Pulse has a strong market share of 19 per cent in the hard-boiled candy segment, which is intensively competitive and fragmented.”
“Indian consumers prefer ethnic as well as mango-based flavours. We have succesfully leveraged on their preference for raw mango and tangy flavours and that has helped the brand gain salience among not only children but also adult consumers,” he added.
Pulse candy is currently distributed through 35 lakh outlets and the company sees huge headroom for growth in terms of growing distribution coverage.
“We now aim to evolve it into a multi-format and multi-occasion offering. We will emphasise on catering to younger consumers while also catering to mature consumers with health-conscious offerings such as Pulse Sugar Free. We plan to strategically extend the brand into adjacent product categories and explore new formats while capitalising on regional flavours,” Kumar said.
The Pulse candy portfolio now also consists of Guava, Orange, Pineapple and Litchi besides soft chewy format in Imli flavour. It is also available in ‘Shots’ format. Recently, Pulse also featured in the IIM Ahmedabad marketing excellence case study.
Talking about the brand’s international expansion, Kumar said, “As part of our phased expansion strategy for the brand, we are initially focusing on select high-potential regions. In the current phase, our priority markets include the USA, Canada and key Asian countries including Nepal, Bhutan and Myanmar.”