Tesla's India entry, Bira's ₹80 Cr. mistake, & Boult's ₹700 Cr. empire🥶

A lot happened this week: big moves, bigger insights.

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Feb 21, 2025

We are back with our new newsletter edition, which covers three important business topics in one go. Today, we discuss Bira’s ₹80 Cr. name-change mess, Tesla’s possible India entry, and Boult’s ₹700 Cr. bootstrapped earbuds empire.

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Bira's ₹80 Cr. “name-change” mess💰

First, some context.
Bira, the company that is said to be the 4th largest beer company of India with ~5% market share, is planning to go IPO in 2026. For that, the company changed its name from “B9 Beverages Private Ltd” to “B9 Beverages Ltd.” and ended up facing an ₹80 crore inventory write-off.

But, what’s the big deal?
Because of this, Bira had to re-register all product labels across multiple states, which have their independent licensing rules. In India’s highly regulated alcohol market, that’s a nightmare. The result? 4-6 months of suspended sales, ₹80 Cr inventory write-off, and a 68% spike in losses. To top it off, distribution policy changes in Delhi NCR & Andhra Pradesh made things even worse. For context, Delhi NCR and Andhra Pradesh, make up 33% of Bira’s total sales, adding to the big dent.

Have we seen this before?
Yes. This isn’t new. We’ve seen companies stuck in approval limbo before. Take 2024, when 100+ brands were left waiting for an excise nod for over six months. The lesson? Regulatory hurdles aren’t an afterthought—you need deep analysis and advanced planning to navigate a space like this. Plus, it will be interesting to see how the 2026 IPO goes as the company will bounce back from this soon.

Tesla’s possible India entry 🚘

First, some context.
Tesla sparked some buzz after multiple LinkedIn postings hinted at an India entry. We might finally be able to see Cybertrucks on Indian roads. Elon Musk has been eyeing India for years, but the roadblock has always been the government’s insistence on local manufacturing in exchange for lower import duties.

What’s up with EV import duties?
The recent Budget slashed import duties on EVs priced above $40,000 from ~100% to 70% while keeping it at 70% for lower-priced EVs. But there’s room for further cuts, especially given Trump’s aggressive tariff stance. He’s made it clear that “reciprocal tariffs” (mirror taxes) are the new norm—which could push India to rethink & further reduce duties.

Will Tesla import or produce here?
Not happening—at least for now. Tesla is expected to enter India through direct imports as per multiple sources including Moneycontrol. There are still no official plans revealed at the moment but this makes the most sense –– Tesla will set up limited flagship outlets in Delhi and Mumbai and start with local spare parts and component sourcing initially. With India’s EV manufacturing ecosystem still maturing, this could still be a nice move for the ecosystem as India will become part of Tesla’s massive global value chain.

Will Tesla make in India in future?
There’s no clarity on whether these EVs will be produced in the US or China. Plus, Trump has made it clear he isn’t too in support of Tesla manufacturing EVs in India, calling it “unfair.” Given the economics, Tesla is unlikely to bet on full-scale production in India anytime soon.

Boult's ₹700 Cr. earbuds empire 🎧

First, some context.
Boult pulls in ₹700 Cr. in annual revenue and is the 2nd largest player in India’s wearables stereo market after Boat. The interesting part? Boult started in 2017 and built all of this in an insanely competitive market, all bootstrapped. Let’s dive into what they cracked—

Sticking to the niche.
Boult started with a tunnel vision: dominate the portable audio segment in the wearables category. While wearables are split into audio and smartwatches, Boult went all in on audio. Within this, the company focused solely on True Wireless Stereo (TWS) and neckbands—together making up 70% of its revenue. The strategy: Start narrow → nail the positioning with clear ICPs (ideal customers) → build a brand → expand into adjacent categories like smartwatches. Pretty similar to what Boat did—but with speakers first.

Cracking the design-first insight.
Boult's user base is 80% male, with most commuting daily. One key insight the brand has cracked is going heavy on design. In every ₹500 price bracket, 7-8 brands sell similar-looking earbuds, making the segment commoditized. But Boult set itself apart by being design-first, quality-second. Better design = better signaling for its core ICPs, making the brand stand out in a crowded market.

Offline plans.
Boult is now doubling down on offline channels as e-commerce gets more competitive. Offline retail is key for stronger brand recall, especially with new product categories in the pipeline. For context: 20% of Boat’s ₹3,100 Cr. revenue comes from offline sales. Boult wants a piece of that pie.

Btw, we hosted Varun (the founder of Boult) on the GrowthX Inner Circle Podcast.

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