How Let's Try is disrupting India's ₹50,000 crore snacks market

What began with cleaning tables and washrooms at a McDonald's outlet in Delhi for ₹20 an hour for Nitin Kalra, founder of Let's Try, has grown into a ₹600 crore homegrown snacking brand taking on legacy FMCG players. In just five years, the bootstrapped startup has scaled rapidly while remaining profitable from its very first year and is now chasing ₹2,000 crore in revenue before making its stock market debut.

After spending 14 years at ITC, PepsiCo, Future Group and other FMCG companies, Kalra says he saw an industry where products had barely evolved despite consumers becoming more aspirational.

"I saw that there is no innovation. The same brands are selling the same products for decades," Kalra tells Fortune India. "People upgraded their homes, cars and clothing, but food had not upgraded. We wanted to create a better option at the right price."

Instead of positioning itself as a premium niche brand, the company focused on using better ingredients such as refined groundnut oil while keeping prices within reach of mass consumers. Kalra argues that many health-focused startups failed because they priced products three to four times higher than established brands, limiting repeat purchases.

According to Farmley's latest Healthy Snacking Report, nearly 86% of Indians prioritise protein while choosing snacks, 32% are willing to pay a premium, and 61% prefer snacks sweetened with jaggery or dates over refined sugar.

The strategy has translated into rapid growth. The company closed last year with revenue of about ₹200 crore. It is now operating at an annual revenue run rate of around ₹600 crore, with monthly primary sales of roughly ₹40 crore and annual consumer offtake already exceeding ₹600 crore. Kalra expects the business to touch a ₹1,000 crore annual revenue run rate by the end of FY27, and possibly earlier if festive demand remains strong.

Built on profits, not cash burn

Unlike many direct-to-consumer startups, Let's Try was launched with Kalra's provident fund savings of ₹10 lakh to ₹15 lakh and a personal loan of around ₹90 lakh. He deliberately avoided raising outside capital until the business model had proven itself.

"I didn't want to build a company with investors' money. I wanted to prove that the business could be profitable and could grow," he says.

The company has since raised ₹40 crore in equity funding, but Kalra says profitability has remained central to the business. According to him, Let's Try has never reported losses. The company is EBITDA-positive and aims to achieve double-digit EBITDA margins by the end of the financial year. EBITDA margins have improved year after year, rising from 1%-2% in the first year to 7%-8% currently.

The brand's growth has also been shaped by its willingness to change course quickly. During the pandemic, Kalra launched the business with packaged pani puri before shutting the category within months after facing product breakage issues. A premium namkeen range followed, only to be replaced again after consumer feedback. The third iteration, featuring nitrogen-packed snacks, became the breakthrough.

"We learn from our mistakes very fast. What may take others years to realise, we correct within weeks," he says.

Quick commerce and e-commerce proved equally decisive for the business. When offline expansion threatened to lock up working capital, Let's Try pivoted online. Last year, online channels contributed 95% of revenue. That share has now fallen to about 80% as the company expands offline into Reliance stores, DMart, airports, railway stations, office canteens and cinema chains.

The company claims to be the second-largest brand in the Indian snacks sector across the geographies where it operates and the third-largest in the overall munchies category. Growth has been strong across western, northern and southern India.

According to market research reports, the Indian snacks market is led by PepsiCo India (Lay's and Kurkure), which holds roughly 45% of the chips and western snacks segment. It is followed by Haldiram's, which commands a 25%-27% share of the overall snacks market and a dominant 36% share of the organised ethnic namkeen category.

The Indian snacks market is currently valued at approximately ₹50,590 crore. It is expected to reach ₹1.97 lakh crore in retail value sales in 2026, growing 8% year on year, and is projected to expand at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 7% through 2031 in current value terms.

Chasing scale without an exit

Today, Let's Try operates three manufacturing facilities in Sonipat and plans to invest ₹60 crore-₹70 crore in two additional units near Bengaluru and Mumbai to keep pace with demand. Kalra says current demand exceeds production capacity, while owning facilities instead of leasing them could save about ₹7 crore annually in rental expenses.

The founder says acquisition offers have come from several established food companies, but he has turned them down. His ambition instead is to build one of India's most successful listed food companies.

"Our target is to create one of India's most successful food IPOs. Once we reach ₹2,000 crore in revenue, we will go for an IPO," he says, adding that the company is targeting a public listing around 2028.

For Kalra, the bigger objective extends beyond taking market share from established snack makers. "We are not targeting what consumers are buying today. We are targeting what they aspire to buy for their families over the next five years," he says.

Whether Let's Try can truly challenge the likes of Haldiram's, PepsiCo and ITC will ultimately depend on whether it can sustain its rapid growth as it expands manufacturing, deepens offline distribution and enters new food categories. However, one thing is evident: as Indian consumers become more conscious of ingredients, the next battle for market share may not be fought on price alone, but on quality, transparency and value.