Pizza Bakery founders Popo Global raise Rs 532 Cr from Artal Asia

Bengaluru-based restaurant chain Popo Global, which operates three brands—The Pizza Bakery, Paris Panini, and Smash Guys—has raised Rs 532 crore from Artal Asia.

The company said it plans to use the funding to expand its brands beyond Bengaluru. The investment is Popo Global’s first external funding round. The nine-year-old company has largely been bootstrapped since its founding.

Founded in 2017 by brothers Nikhil Gupta and Abhijit Gupta, Popo Global operates across dine-in and delivery formats, with standardised processes across its brands.

“Bringing Artal Asia into Popo lets us think considerably bigger while keeping the spirit that got us here - never cutting any corners on quality. They have partnered with some of the world's most successful food businesses, and they understand that the product has to stay at the centre of it,” the founders said in a statement.

Popo Global operates a mix of quick-service and dine-in restaurants, along with delivery kitchens. Over the past nine years, the company has expanded from a single outlet in 2017 to 40 outlets, all of which are located in Bengaluru.

“Our mission is to empower exceptional entrepreneurs to transform their industries. We are proud to support Popo Global in continuing their customer and product obsession at greater scale,” said Lee Swee Yin, Director at Artal Asia.

Artal Asia is the affiliate of Artal Group whose global portfolio includes CAVA, a Mediterranean fast-casual brand in the United States . In India, its investments include Capital Foods and now Popo Global.

The Rainmaker Group (TRMG) acted as the exclusive advisor to Popo Global.

Avijit Goel, Partner, The Rainmaker Group, said, “With Artal Asia’s patient capital and global operating expertise, this fundamentally well-run, Bangalore-born company is well-positioned to become India's most-loved restaurant business.”

The founders of Popo Global highlighted that when they started nine years ago they did not imagine of becoming a restaurant company but were driven by the belief that providing quality food with the result of repeat customers. “That belief became a business, then three brands, and now a platform we think can be much bigger than any one of them.”