Premium ice cream chain Hokey Pokey raises angel funding

Wednesday August 21, 2013 , 2 min Read

Drums Food International, owner of the Hokey Pokey brand of premium ice cream, announced that the company has closed a Pre-Series A Round of financing of under a million dollars, from an investor group led by Dr. Peter Rajsingh (partner at New York based Castellar Partners), Shripad Nadkarni (former marketing head at Coca Cola India), and Apurva Salarpuria (director at the Salarpuria Group)

Hokey Pokey is a leading premium ice cream brand. Hokey Pokey introduced the concept of interactive ice cream counters at its ice cream parlours where customers customise flavours, mixed to order on cold stone slabs. The company has recently tied up with coffee chain Barista Lavazza to co-brand in select Barista Lavazza outlets. Hokey Pokey is now expanding its product line into FMCG ice cream products. And the use of funds from this round will be used primarily to launch the company’s FMCG strategy.Speaking to YourStory.in, Rohan Mirchandani, co-Founder and CEO, said, “We are happy to have the backing and support of such a distinguished group of individuals and are confident that their guidance will play a significant role in shaping our success. They will be guiding us on brand strategy, financial and real estate decisions.”

The demand for premium ice cream in India has grown rapidly in recent years as tastes have become more sophisticated, the palate for premium quality desserts has expanded, and disposable incomes have increased. The company continues to develop its retail parlour footprint in Tier 2 and 3 cities. The FMCG route being adopted by Hokey Pokey will address demand for premium ice cream for home consumption in metropolitan areas. Ready-to-go packs will initially be available at company parlours and Barista outlets in Mumbai. The company is in talks with major retailers to offer Hokey Pokey premium ice cream in supermarket chains.

The company has also got on board Chef Ganesh, a celebrity chef as the COO, and Baldev Singh Jolly , as the head of sales to lead their FMCG strategy. Baldev was earlier working on brands for healthcare company Zydus Cadilla.