Brands
Britannia elevates Siddharth Gupta to vice president marketing
FMCG veteran rises after leading core biscuits and snacks brands
MUMBAI: Britannia Industries has elevated Siddharth Gupta to vice president marketing, marking the latest step in a career shaped by some of the country’s most recognisable FMCG brands. The move recognises his contributions across brand strategy, product innovation and marketing leadership.
Gupta has spent more than eight years at Britannia, steadily rising through the ranks. He currently serves as marketing head for biscuits, wafers and snacks, a role he took on in April 2025 after three years as general manager marketing. In that phase, he led core portfolios such as premium creams, crackers, marie and milk biscuits, categories that sit at the heart of Britannia’s shelves and sales.
Before that, he handled roles including senior category head for milk, marie and crackers, and category head for crackers and tiger, building experience across both legacy favourites and value-driven mass brands.
Prior to joining Britannia, Gupta spent nearly eleven years at Colgate-Palmolive, where he worked across sales, shopper marketing and brand management. His responsibilities ranged from handling the visible white, max fresh and sensitive toothpaste portfolios to leading innovation on products such as active salt healthy white and the painout tooth pain relief gel.
Over the years, he also managed toothbrush categories, modern trade initiatives and regional sales, giving him a ground-up understanding of the business, from shop floor to brand boardroom.
With this elevation, Gupta takes on a wider leadership brief at Britannia, as the company continues to sharpen its marketing playbook across biscuits, snacks and beyond.
Brands
Kwality Wall’s reports standalone losses following strategic HUL demerger
Ice cream major faces Rs 64 crore Ebitda loss amid commodity inflation and muted Q3 sales
MUMBAI: Kwality Wall’s (India) Limited (KWIL) has released its first set of financial results as a standalone entity, revealing a challenging start to its independent journey. Following its successful demerger from Hindustan Unilever Limited (HUL) on 1st December 2025 and its subsequent listing on 16th February 2026, the company is navigating a transition period marked by structural changes and high input costs.
For the quarter ended 31st December 2025, the company reported revenue of Rs 222 crores. Despite the revenue base, the bottom line was impacted by several factors, resulting in an Ebitda loss of Rs 64.2 crores. When calculated on a Pre-IND AS 116 basis, the Ebitda loss stood at Rs 83.8 crores.
Organic Sales Growth (OSG) declined by 6.5 per cent year-on-year during the quarter. Volume growth, however, saw a marginal increase of 1.2 per cent. The company reported a gross margin of 41.5 per cent. Additionally, exceptional expenses amounting to Rs 94 crores were recorded, primarily linked to non-recurring costs during the transition phase.
Performance across portfolios and channels was mixed. Within the impulse portfolio, brands such as Magnum and Cornetto recorded mid-single digit volume growth, indicating steady demand in on-the-go consumption. However, the in-home portfolio, which includes take-home packs, experienced muted consumption. The company is planning a relaunch of this category with improved offerings ahead of the 2026 season.
Quick commerce (Q-Com) continued to emerge as a strong growth driver, delivering robust double-digit growth during the quarter. Meanwhile, the company also expanded its physical distribution network by increasing the number of company-owned cabinets across markets.
Margin pressure during the quarter was driven by a combination of one-off factors and broader cost inflation. Gross margins were impacted by around 600 basis points due to trade investments made for stock liquidation. Additionally, cocoa price inflation contributed to another 400 basis points of pressure on margins.
Deputy managing director Chitrank Goel attributed the muted performance partly to prolonged monsoons and transitional challenges linked to the GST framework. Operating expenses also increased as the company invested in establishing its standalone supply chain, operational systems and corporate infrastructure following the demerger.
Looking ahead, the management remains focused on a volume-driven growth strategy. To restore profitability, the company has initiated a cost productivity programme aimed at reducing non-consumer-facing costs. It is also working on building regional manufacturing networks to optimise logistics expenses and improve operational efficiency.
The commodity outlook for the near term remains mixed. Dairy prices are expected to remain firm due to tight supply conditions and rising fodder costs. Sugar prices may also move higher following increases in the Minimum Selling Price (MSP). While cocoa prices have moderated recently, currency depreciation has offset some of the potential cost relief for the company.
