How Let’s Try Tripled Revenue To Cross ₹200 Cr In A Year

India’s snacking market doesn’t usually reward newcomers, and for good reasons. Shelf space is fiercely contested, distribution is expensive, and consumers tend to stick with brands they already know and trust. Even new-age D2C brands that promise healthier products, compared to legacy brands, have found it difficult to sustain themselves. Several players have tried to outplay the champions of this space, but to no avail.

Despite the formidable entry barriers, there are outliers, a lot smaller than the industry behemoths, that have remained profitable from day one. Let’s Try, a premium healthy snack brand incorporated in 2021, is a key example.

Its journey is a case study that projects how strong product-market fit, consumer repeat purchases and disciplined execution can outperform heavy marketing spends. The brand’s zero-to-one story shows how a sharp understanding of consumer demand and relentless product iteration can help build a brand on par with FMCG giants without burning excessive capital.

Cofounded by Nitin Kalra (CEO), along with his family members, the brand crossed the ₹200 Cr revenue mark in just one year, making it one of the rarest brand stories in a category where growth is unlikely to come easily.

So, what helped?

It was Nitin’s exposure to the country’s FMCG sector. After serving names such as ITC and PepsiCo for nearly 14 years, Nitin realised that there was a dire need for a brand that could compete with better-quality products at accessible price points. This thought emerged from his growing concern about the Indian snacking industry that heavily relies on preservatives, palm oil and artificial flavours.

Not to mention, the market is already filled to the brim with brands that rely heavily on celebrity endorsements and distribution muscle. Besides, newer flavours take over the market every fortnight, making it difficult for brands to identify and exploit whitespaces.

In this landscape, Nitin forayed into the market with snacks that were fried in pure groundnut oil to offer a healthier, trans-fat-free alternative to palm oil or refined oils.

But, stepping into the clean eating space was just the first baby step to creating a more powerful brand. Bigger demons had yet to be fought.

Operating on a shoestring budget and completely bootstrapped, the next task was to build a sustainable sales funnel at the outset. However, what they could not afford was being weighed down by hefty marketing spends or constant fundraising rounds.

To remedy this, they focused on curating products that would keep consumers coming back for more. “If they are not spending money to buy the product again, you cannot build a business,” the CEO said.

Did it work? Without a doubt. The Delhi NCR-based packaged snacks brand was able to grow its revenue 212% from ₹65 Cr in FY25 to around ₹203 Cr in FY26. The startup is yet to file its audited results.

Finding PMF The Hard Way

The founders entered the market for good-quality snacks that are affordable and relevant to evolving consumer preferences. Unlike many founders who spend months conducting market surveys, they relied on years of category experience and on-the-ground understanding to identify the opportunity.

“So, the early days were less about expansion and more about getting the fundamentals in place. We spent our initial years experimenting with products, refining recipes and building a manufacturing backbone that could support our long-term scale,” the CEO said.

Unlike many brands that stumble upon a winning formula early on, the founders of Let’s Try had to experiment extensively before finding what worked. They launched three series of products, including pani puri products, roasted products, Makhana and niche mixes, in the first 12 months. Two products, namely Pani Puri snacks and niche offerings like spinach and cashew, made zero revenue. Therefore, the founders kept on changing their product mix until they found what consumers wanted.

Initially, nearly 95% of sales came from offline retail channels. While that approach offered reach, it created operational challenges — payments were slow, working capital requirements were high and customer feedback cycles were painfully long.

The founders realised that understanding consumer behaviour through traditional retail could take months. Therefore, they shifted toward online channels.

Marketplaces and digital platforms provided immediate consumer feedback, faster payment cycles and significantly lower working-capital pressure. This shift helped the company identify winning products more quickly and refine its portfolio based on real consumer demand.

Over time, the online channel became the company’s primary growth engine. Once product-market fit was firmly established, Let’s Try returned to offline expansion from a position of strength.

Today, roughly 30% of its business comes from offline channels, including airports, schools, colleges, offices, railways and hospitality locations.

“Online helped us understand whether consumers were buying our products again. That feedback was extremely valuable for building the business,” the CEO said.

The Shark Tank Catapult & The Manufacturing Push

For Let’s Try, the turning point came with its appearance on Shark Tank in 2024. At the time, the brand was capital-constrained and could not compete with legacy brands on traditional mass media spends. Stars aligned, and the founders convinced the sharks of their potential and secured ₹45 Lakh (at a valuation of ₹3.75 Cr) for a 12% equity.

“The first success for us was our appearance on Shark Tank India. We didn’t have the money to do large-scale marketing. The platform helped consumers and retailers understand what we were trying to build,” the CEO said.

The real shift, however, came after the episode aired. The nationwide television exposure helped the company strengthen its brand perception and attract investor interest. What started as an early-stage deal at a valuation of less than ₹4 Cr eventually grew into a company that now holds a valuation of around ₹1,000 Cr.

The momentum also translated into follow-on capital. Let’s Try went on to raise a $2.5 Mn (around ₹24 Cr) Pre-Series A round, led by SWC Global, with participation from existing and returning backers, including Aman Gupta (boAt), Wipro Consumer, 100Unicorns, and Venture Catalysts.

This capital stack was then used to deepen distribution across Tier I, II and III markets, strengthen supply chain systems, and expand its portfolio of health-focused snacking products.

Meanwhile, one of the biggest constraints for Let’s Try has been production capacity. So far, the founders have invested approximately ₹40-50 Cr in manufacturing infrastructure.

Its second facility became operational less than a year ago. The third plant is expected to begin operations shortly. The founders are also planning a significantly larger manufacturing campus.

The goal is not merely expansion but greater automation. Initially, all production was manual. Today, around 60% of manufacturing is automated. Management expects to automate 90% of its operations by next year. The shift is expected to improve consistency, increase capacity and lower manufacturing costs.

The Next Growth Chapter

Looking ahead, Let’s Try is entering what founder Nitin Kalra describes as the company’s next phase of growth, with a target of reaching around ₹600 Cr in revenue in FY27 after reporting approximately ₹203-204 Cr in FY26.

A key pillar of this growth strategy is category expansion. While the brand has built its presence primarily through Indian snacks, Kalra believes the larger opportunity lies in categories where established FMCG companies dominate. Therefore, the founders are making an aggressive push into western snacks, including bakery products such as cookies and cakes, protein-focused offerings and no-sugar sweets.

Let’s Try has already launched millet-based cookies and plans to broaden its portfolio with products aimed at consumers seeking healthier alternatives without compromising on taste.

To support this plan, Let’s Try is undertaking a major manufacturing expansion. According to the CEO, demand for the company’s products has consistently outpaced production capacity, making supply constraints one of the biggest challenges to growth. To remedy this, the brand has already shifted manufacturing facilities multiple times in four years, added a second plant less than a year ago and expects a third facility to become operational in the coming months.

The founders are also planning a significantly larger manufacturing campus, spread across five acres, to support annual production capacity worth several thousand crores. Once manufacturing capacity expands sufficiently, the brand plans to explore export opportunities.

Alongside capacity expansion, the company is increasing automation across its factories. Production is now around 60% automated, and management expects automation levels to reach approximately 90% over the next year.

Distribution expansion forms another critical part of the company’s roadmap. While online channels remain a major contributor to sales, Let’s Try sees significant headroom in offline retail. The company has already expanded into airports, railways, schools, colleges, offices and hospitality channels, but the founders believe offline penetration still has enough potential.

The company plans to deepen its presence across general trade and modern trade networks while also strengthening its reach in tier II and III cities, which are increasingly contributing to growth. According to Nitin, these markets have emerged as meaningful demand centres as consumers become more willing to experiment with new packaged food brands.

Finally, the Let’s Try founders have set an ambitious target of crossing ₹1,000 Cr in revenue by FY28. Can it reach the scale to lock horns with the legacy giants?

[Edited by Shishir Parasher]

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