Weikfield Foods Private Ltd, known for its custard powder and pasta, is looking to launch innovative products primarily in the dessert category to strengthen its product portfolio. The company is also looking to launch newer variants of pasta to develop the instant pasta portfolio.

According to Dipy Sachdeva, CEO, Weikfield Foods, the company is expecting to grow by around 30 per cent on a year-on-year basis for the next few years backed by the launch of new products. It is also looking to strengthen its presence in the top 50 cities of the country to grow its sales.

“When Covid hit us, we initially lost sales in April and May last year. However, we saw panic buying in the subsequent months and there was a surge in sales. The pandemic brought a big change in the way people were eating, making and consuming food and we saw a surge in home baking,” Sachdeva told BusinessLine .

Global cuisine

The ₹200-crore company has a variety of products spanning from custard, cornflour, baking powder, cocoa, pasta, falooda, sauces and cake mixes. It is looking to launch more variants in desserts keeping the global cuisine in mind.

“We are looking to launch new innovative products which we plan to launch early next fiscal. With a clear focus on global cuisine we are looking to add new desserts,” he said.

The company’s sales, which kept increasing at a rapid pace till August-September, has witnessed some slowdown post the opening up in most States. However, on a year-on-year basis, sales are still higher by around 30 per cent as compared to last year.

The share of institutional sales, which accounted for nearly 25 per cent of its total turnover, came down to around 15 per cent on the back of the lockdown. However, now with the opening up it is expected to start picking up again. Weikfield expects institutional sales to account for 20-22 per cent of its total turnover moving forward.

Weikfield is also looking to enhance its digital presence so as to give a boost to online sales. Online currently accounts for only around five per cent of its total sales. Plans are afoot to double the share of online to its total sales in the next 12 months.

“We are focusing on e-commerce as a category. We are looking to actively engage with people in the age group of 25-40 years who are more digital-savvy,” he said.

comment COMMENT NOW