“Under the joint venture agreement, RCPL holds a majority stake, while Udhaiyams’ erstwhile owners hold a minority stake in the company. The deal brings the food company and Tamil Nadu’s heritage nutrition brand, Udhaiyam, under RCPL’s fold, adding strength to the FMCG major’s branded staples portfolio,” the company said in a regulatory filing.
Post the acquisition, the erstwhile promoters—S. Sudhakar and S. Dinakar—will continue to hold a minority stake in the company. Backed by more than 30 years of experience in the staples segment and in scaling the packaged pulses business at Udhaiyams, they will remain actively involved to support the company’s next phase of growth.
Udhaiyams Agro Foods Private Ltd, which operates under the popular flagship brand ‘Udhaiyam’, brings with it a legacy of over three decades and a strong market presence in Tamil Nadu. Over the years, the brand has built a formidable position across key staple and food product categories such as rice, spices, snacks, and idli batter, supported by an extensive and well-entrenched distribution network.
Earlier this week, Morgan Stanley said that the Mukesh Ambani-led company will see rating upgrades every quarter in 2026. For the retail segment, the brokerage said that consumer brands business has scaled rapidly over the past three years to reach a size comparable with peers such as ITC’s FMCG business, with over 75% of trade coming from general merchandise.
As the business continues to expand, it is expected to be margin and ROCE-accretive for Reliance Retail. Growth is also being supported by quick commerce through JioMart, which recorded 42% quarter-on-quarter growth in the September 2025 quarter by leveraging the existing retail footprint and an expanding network of dark stores to enable deliveries within 30 minutes. The ramp- is expected to help drive a recovery in RIL’s retail growth to a 17% CAGR over FY25–FY28.
RIL shares have risen over 26% since the beginning of the year. (Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views, and opinions given by the experts are their own. They do not represent the views of the Economic Times)