Nestle India reported a 14.6 per cent jump in its net profit for the January-March quarter, backed by double-digit growth in domestic sales and muted rise in raw material costs compared to the corresponding quarter last year. The firm’s net profit for the quarter stood at Rs 602 crore, up from Rs 525 crore in 2020. Its net sales surged 8.9 per cent year-on-year to Rs 3,600 crore from Rs 3,306 crore. Domestic sales that contribute to over 94 per cent towards its revenue, grew 10.2 per cent to Rs 3,442 crore but exports declined 13 per cent, dragging its top-line growth to single digit.

The company said it registered a broad-based growth during the quarter, largely driven by volume and mix. Key products like Maggi Noodles, Kitkat, Nescafé Classic, Maggi Sauces, Milkmaid, Maggi Masala-Ae-Magic, among others, delivered robust performance and achieved double-digit growth as in-home consumption surged, said Suresh Narayanan, chairman, and managing director at Nestle India. While demand from out-of-home channels improved further, it continues to be impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic.

Further, the ongoing pandemic continued to boost its online sales. In the quarter, sales from e-commerce channels grew by 66 percent year-on-year and contributed an unprecedented 3.8 per cent towards its domestic sales. The growing cost of key materials, however, is emerging as a potential challenge, said Narayanan. “While the Nestlé India family has learned to cope with the operating volatility in the pandemic, recent sharp escalations in key raw material prices pose challenges that we will resolutely respond to while maintaining the integrity of our business model”.