

At 94, Dinshaw’s Dairy bets on a Gen Z glow-up
Subscribe to enjoy similar stories.Dinshaw’s Dairy Pvt Ltd, founded in 1932, is trying to look and think younger. The 94-year-old Nagpur-based ice cream maker is recasting its identity to appeal to a new generation of consumers, while making investments to expand its footprint beyond Maharashtra into markets across India, Zervin Rana, director at the company, told Mint in an interview.The push comes months after a comprehensive rebranding exercise that refreshed the company’s logo and positioning.
“We hadn’t really invested in the brand identity for a very long time. Our marketing spend until four to five years ago was practically zero,” Rana said.While the business continued to grow on the back of trust in the legacy brand and distribution heft, Rana said the brand risked losing relevance among Gen Z consumers.
“We realized there is no relevance for them. A brand’s look, appeal, everything has to be for today’s age,” he noted.This modernization comes at a cost.
The firm logged operating revenue of ₹856.5 crore in FY24, up from ₹746 crore the previous year. Its loss for the year more than doubled to ₹53.1 crore, weighed down by higher expenses, according to filings with the ministry of corporate affairs, accessed by business intelligence platform Tofler.In addition to repositioning its brand, Dinshaw’s is widening its geographic reach.
While Maharashtra remains its core market, the company has been scaling its presence in states such as Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, with plans to enter Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan. “Maharashtra will provide a significant part of our ice cream revenues,” Rana said, while adding that growth in other states has been “significant” over the past few years.However,
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