Temasek-backed online meat & seafood retailer Licious is preparing its path to the public markets. With plans to reduce losses, expand offline presence, and strengthen supply chains, the founders aim to list the company — though recent signals suggest they may wait until 2027–28. Below is the full Licious IPO journey: key events, financials, and outlook.
💡 Licious IPO Highlights
- Target Valuation: ~USD 2 billion (as per some media reports)
- IPO Timeline: Originally targeted in 2026, but founders have now indicated expecting an IPO in 2027–28
- Focus Ahead: Achieve profitability first; build offline/omnichannel retail; deepen distribution and cold chain reach
Licious IPO News
August 2025 — Licious IPO Deferred to 2027–28, Profitability Emphasis
At the ET Soonicorns Summit 2025, co-founders Abhay Hanjura and Vivek Gupta announced that Licious is deferring its IPO plans to 2027–28, calling the “unicorn tag” a digression and stressing sustainable growth over hype.
They revealed that Licious expects to reach profitability within 6–8 months, focusing on unit-level efficiency and brand fundamentals rather than valuations.
The founders reaffirmed that the company is on track to achieve operational profitability by Q1 FY26, supported by offline expansion and higher-margin ready-to-eat categories.
In FY24, Licious reported narrowing its loss to INR 294 crore with revenue at INR 685 crore (-8% YoY).
February 2025 — Licious IPO Dates, Plans & Valuation Target
Licious reportedly planned an IPO within 12–18 months, targeting a valuation near USD 2 billion (~INR 17,500 crore) while aggressively expanding offline stores and product categories.
The company announced ambitions to triple its offline presence (to ~500 stores) and grow its ready-to-eat / ready-to-cook verticals as key revenue drivers.
2024 – 2025 — Investor Growth & Offline Expansion
Licious acquired My Chicken & More, a Bengaluru-based offline retailer, adding ~23 stores to its network to strengthen omnichannel reach.
Its major backers — Temasek, 3One4 Capital, Multiples PE, and Vertex Ventures — continued supporting expansion and governance upgrades.
2022 – 2023 — Path to Profitability & Product Diversification
Licious reported a 64% YoY revenue jump to INR 682 crore in FY22, narrowing losses to INR 686 crore from INR 860 crore.
It launched new brands such as Uncrave (plant-protein snacks) and Licious Everyday Meats, expanding into healthy RTE segments.
The company also began export trials to Southeast Asia, marking its first international foray.
October 2021 — Becomes India’s First D2C Food Unicorn
Licious raised USD 52 million (~INR 460 crore) in a secondary round led by IIFL AMC’s Late Stage Tech Fund, becoming India’s first D2C food unicorn at a valuation of USD 1.05 billion (~INR 8,500 crore).
This milestone cemented its leadership in India’s premium meat and seafood retail space.
Licious IPO News: July 2021 — USD 192 Million Series F Raise
Licious raised USD 192 million (~INR 1,700 crore) in its Series F round led by Temasek, Multiples PE, and existing investors.
The funding enabled a major scale-up of cold-chain infrastructure, processing centres, and pan-India market reach.
2020 — Pandemic Demand Surge & Supply-Chain Expansion
During COVID-19 lockdowns, Licious saw a 3X spike in demand as home cooking surged.
The company expanded from 10 to 20 cities, launched contactless delivery, and introduced subscription packs for meat and seafood orders.
These investments solidified its farm-to-fork trust model.
2019 (December) — USD 30 Million Series E Round
Licious secured USD 30 million (~INR 266 crore) (Series E) led by Vertex Growth Fund, with participation from 3One4 Capital, Bertelsmann, and Mayfield.
Funds supported processing capacity expansion and city launches across India.
2017 – 2018 — Infrastructure Build-Up
The company raised about USD 10 million (~INR 88 crore) Series B from Mayfield India and 3One4 Capital to build large-scale processing centres and cold-storage facilities in Hyderabad and Mumbai.
This period established Licious as a vertically integrated cold-chain retailer ready for national scale.
Licous IPO: 2015 – 2016 — Founding & Early Funding
Licious was founded in 2015 by Abhay Hanjura and Vivek Gupta in Bengaluru, beginning operations that October.
Early funding included a USD 1 million seed round (2015) and Series A in 2016 led by Mayfield and 3One4 Capital.
The startup built a farm-to-fork model, controlling procurement, cold storage, processing, and last-mile delivery to ensure freshness and quality.
📊 Financial Snapshot & Key Metrics (Recent Years)
| Metric | FY23 | FY24 |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue | ~INR 748 crore | INR 685 crore (decline ~8.4%) |
| Net Loss | INR 528.5 crore | INR 294 crore (loss narrowed) |
| Growth Rate | — | ~40% YoY growth |
🏗 Company Strategy & Evolution
Licious has distinguished itself by building vertical control over its supply chain — from sourcing to processing to last-mile delivery. Its farm-to-fork D2C model ensures product traceability and quality assurance.
Key strategic elements:
- Accelerating offline/physical store expansion (My Chicken & More acquisition) to capture omnichannel demand.
- Pushing into ready-to-cook / ready-to-eat product lines to diversify margins and consumer appeal.
- Focusing on profitability before IPO, rather than overvalued listing. Founders emphasize sustainability over valuation runs.
- Discouraging expectations of ultra-fast 10-minute delivery for meat products due to perishability constraints.
Conclusion
The Licious IPO story is evolving — while earlier plans pointed to a 2026 listing, the founders now prefer to strengthen the business first, with ambitions to go public in 2027–28. If Licious can narrow losses further, build its offline + readiness verticals, and sustain consumer growth, the IPO could mark a landmark listing in India’s food-tech / D2C space.
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