The deal
ITC Limited has completed the acquisition of Sproutlife Foods Private Limited, the parent company of digital-first nutrition brand Yoga Bar, after buying the remaining 52.5% stake for approximately ₹645 crore. The cash purchase of 13,445 equity shares lifts ITC’s holding from about 47.5% to 100%, making Sproutlife Foods a wholly owned subsidiary from September 28, 2026.
The move completes a phased plan that began in January 2023, when ITC said it intended to acquire the business over three to four years. It first bought a 39.42% stake for ₹175 crore in May 2023, then raised its holding to about 47.5% before the latest transaction.
Why Yoga Bar fits
Yoga Bar operates in the nutrition and healthy foods category, with distribution across direct-to-consumer, e-commerce and offline retail. That channel mix matters for a legacy FMCG buyer. The brand brings digital shelf presence, direct customer relationships and a modern health-focused range together, exactly the assets that large consumer companies often find slower to build in-house.
The growth story is also unusually strong. Sproutlife Foods reported turnover of ₹452 crore in FY26, up from ₹200 crore in FY25 and ₹108 crore in FY24. Put simply, revenue has more than quadrupled in three years, with the latest year roughly doubling from the prior year.
The bigger FMCG signal
- ₹645 crore: paid for the remaining 52.5% stake
- ₹452 crore: Yoga Bar parent FY26 turnover, up from ₹200 crore in FY25
- 39.42% to 100%: ITC’s stake journey across three years
The deal reflects a clear pattern: established FMCG companies are buying digital-first health and wellness brands to fill category gaps and reach younger, more health-conscious consumers. ITC sees the acquisition as part of strengthening its future-ready foods portfolio and expanding in nutrition-led categories.
For marketing leaders, the lesson is that a D2C brand’s most valuable assets may not be its products alone. The trade buyer is paying for repeatable revenue growth, category positioning, distribution learning and a direct channel that can be plugged into a larger sales machine.
What marketers can do
If you run or advise a D2C brand, treat the revenue trajectory and channel split as an investor-facing asset. Yoga Bar’s offline expansion alongside D2C made it more attractive to a traditional FMCG parent. Reported growth, clean unit economics and a clear category story are what acquirers underwrite.
For incumbents, the staged buyout offers a template: take a meaningful minority stake first, observe performance, then buy control when the category and team prove themselves. It lowers integration risk and lets the larger company learn from the startup before taking over fully.
The choice for marketers is no longer digital-first versus traditional; it is how quickly the two operating models can be combined after the cheque clears. ITC’s next moves on Yoga Bar’s pricing, distribution and brand architecture will show whether the ₹645 crore confidence translates into sustained category leadership.
Source: MediaNews4U
