Not a lot of people out there can still imagine ordering raw meat online, but Licious is doing just that. And it is not a new company at all. See, Licious has been at it since 2015, and right now, this business is doing super well in India. This was the idea of Abhay Hanjura and Vivek Gupta, and now we can clearly say that it is a hit idea. But it is not just selling meat online that makes Licious the total revenue; there are other things that go on behind the scenes that are major income sources for them. So, let’s just talk about the Licious Business Model (or how does Licious makes money?) today, shall we?
| Company / Brand name | Licious (operated by Delightful Gourmet Pvt. Ltd.) |
| Establishment year | 2015 |
| Headquarters | Bengaluru, Karnataka, India |
| Founder / Owner | Abhay Hanjura and Vivek Gupta |
| Industry | D2C foodtech |
| Net worth / Latest reported valuation | US$2 billion IPO valuation in media reports. |
| Total revenue in FY 2023-24 | ₹685.05 crore (FY 2023-24) |
What Does Licious Sell and How Does It Work?
The brand Licious is a great choice if you want to buy fresh and live food items. It delivers the customers the products that include fresh meat, eggs, and seafood, besides ready-to-cook and ready-to-eat meals. The company also ensures that the same levels of cleanliness, product traceability, and packaging are maintained during the whole journey.
The majority of customers typically use the Licious app or website to place their orders. However, to get to more customers and lower delivery expenses, the company is extending its offline stores and collection points. Working with a combination of standard cuts and value-added (for example, marinated or cooked) products allows Licious not only to turn over but also to profit.
So, How Does Licious Make Money?
- Direct Product Sales (App, Website & Own Stores): The direct consumer market is Licious’ main revenue-generating activity. The company makes most of the money by selling meat, seafood, eggs, and other things directly to consumers.
- Premium & Ready-to-Cook / Ready-to-Eat Products: Such products usually have higher prices and better margins than raw meat, which in turn is the main reason for the company to increase its overall profitability.
- Delivery & Convenience Fees: Licious either charges delivery fees or provides subscription plans that are more economical for very regular users, thus making the delivery costs lower. They then use the money to cover part of the last-mile delivery expenses.
- Subscription & Membership Programs: Paid plans allow users to enjoy benefits such as free delivery, discounts, and unique offers. So sure enough, such schemes promote customer loyalty and lead to a rise in repeat purchases.
- B2B & Wholesale Orders: Restaurants, caterers, and other similar businesses are supplied in large volumes by the company. The company is able to make good use of its processing capacity by working in this very manner.
- Quick-Commerce Platforms: Licious widens its customer base by making the same deliveries quicker and adding more apps for fast delivery. But usually profits from these deliveries are lower than those from the direct channels, still, it is a good income stream.
- Offline Stores & Pickup Points: Licious caters to walk-in customers via physical stores and pickup counters, hence saving the company delivery costs over long distances.
- Other Income Sources: Yes, there are some other small but additional revenue sources that come from co-branding, corporate gifting, and event catering.
Why Licious Controls Its Own Supply Chain
Meat and seafood handling are definitely difficult and require the highest standard of hygiene as well as temperature control. You’d understand that very well. It is for this very reason that Licious operates its own processing centers, cold chain, and sourcing operations.
Licious is able to guarantee freshness, safety, and quality at each step when they do everything in-house. This is also beneficial for the company as it can keep more of the profits that would usually be shared with the intermediaries. Yes, this method requires a lot of capital, but it gives Licious the opportunity to keep its standards at the highest level and command a slight price premium, you know, something that most customers are not bothered by.
Financial Snapshot
In the fiscal year of 2023-24, Licious’ turnover was approximately ₹685.05 crore. Comparing the result to last year, the company itself has successfully cut down its net loss by close to 44%, which has gone on to reach about ₹294 crore.
The betterment was mainly due to concentrating more on the channels managed by the company and the cost reduction after the cessation of some third-party collaborations. These figures indicate that Licious is decreasing its negative cash flows and progressing to a steady state, that is just pure good news for this company.
Licious Investors and Valuation
Licious attracts a lot of big investors’ attention and has already become a unicorn company, which implies that its value is more than one billion US dollars. Its value was around 1.5 billion USD in 2023.
The company Licious is said to be getting ready for a public offering, with a goal of arriving at a valuation of about 2 billion dollars, according to recent reports. This objective not only indicates the rising investor confidence but also highlights the firm’s progress into the profit territory.
