Rebel Foods evolved from Faasos into a multi-brand cloud-kitchen company operating brands across India's food delivery market.
Discover the story of Rebel Foods founder Jaydeep Barman, from launching Faasos with Kallol Banerjee to building a global cloud-kitchen business with brands like Behrouz Biryani and Oven Story Pizza.
Written by TFN Research Desk | covering startups, technology, venture capital, and business strategy
Quick Facts
| Founders | Jaydeep Barman, Kallol Banerjee |
| Education | Both founders – IIM Lucknow, INSEAD MBA; Jaydeep Barman – Engineering, IIT Kanpur |
| Prior Ventures | Jaydeep Barman – McKinsey, London; Kallol Banerjee – Bosch, Singapore |
| Role | Co-Founder and CEO, Rebel Foods (Jaydeep Barman) |
| Founded | 2011 |
| Sector | Cloud Kitchens / FoodTech |
Introduction
Jaydeep Barman missed Bengali food. In 2003, frequently travelling abroad for work and craving the egg rolls of Kolkata, he opened a small roll joint in Pune with his colleague Kallol Banerjee, naming it Faasos. (Forbes India) What began as a side project fuelled by homesickness eventually became Rebel Foods, now widely described as the world’s largest cloud kitchen company. (OrangeOwl)
The Rebel Foods Story
Faasos actually predates Rebel Foods’ official 2011 founding by several years. Barman and Banerjee ran the single Pune outlet almost as a passion project through the mid-2000s, before both leaving to pursue second MBAs at INSEAD, after which Barman joined McKinsey in London and Banerjee joined Bosch in Singapore. (The Ken) The dream of building something of their own eventually pulled them back to Pune in 2011, this time with serious ambitions to build a McDonald’s or Domino’s-style QSR chain tailored to Indian tastes. (The Ken)
That high-street QSR model hit a wall quickly: rising rents and store-level economics that didn’t scale, since physical storefronts were a fixed cost that capped how fast the business could grow. (OrangeOwl) That constraint led to what Barman calls one of his “lightbulb moments”: strip out the storefront entirely and invest only in the kitchen itself, ideally in a low-rent location, since customers ordering delivery never needed to see where their food was cooked. (The Ken) The company launched its first cloud kitchen in 2015 and became a fully delivery-only, cloud-kitchen-first business by 2016. (Wikipedia)
In 2018, the company renamed itself Rebel Foods to reflect its ambitions beyond a single brand, and began licensing its cloud kitchen infrastructure and technology to other restaurant chains through the Rebel Launcher Program. (Wikipedia) That multi-brand playbook let Rebel Foods scale rapidly, launching brands including Behrouz Biryani, Oven Story Pizza, and The Good Bowl, and by 2021 the company had become India’s first cloud kitchen unicorn at a $1.4 billion valuation. (OrangeOwl)
Business Model
Rebel Foods earns revenue primarily by selling food products across its multi-brand kitchen network, along with technology and delivery services:
| Revenue Stream | How It Works |
|---|---|
| Food product sales | Direct sales across its 45+ owned and partner brands; ~97% of operating revenue |
| Rebel Launcher licensing | Technology and infrastructure fees from outsourcing its Rebel OS platform to other restaurant chains |
| Delivery and financial services | Revenue tied to delivery logistics booked through platforms like EatSure |
| QuickiES (15-minute delivery) | New app entering the fast-delivery food category alongside Blinkit Bistro and Swiggy SNACC |
(Sourced from Entrackr and Whalesbook)
Funding History
| Round | Year | Amount | Key Investors |
|---|---|---|---|
| Series E | 2019 | ~$125 million | Coatue Management, Goldman Sachs |
| Series F | 2021 | Undisclosed | Sequoia Capital, Lightbox Ventures, QIA ($1.4B valuation) |
| Series G | Dec 2024 | $210 million | Temasek (lead), Evolvence |
| Growth round | Apr 2026 | $25 million | Qatar Investment Authority ($1.4B valuation) |
(Sourced from Inc42 and Wikipedia)
Overall, Rebel Foods has raised approximately $803 million to date, reaching a valuation of roughly $1.4-1.6 billion, and the company is now targeting an IPO in FY26. (Entrackr; Inc42)
Revenue and Growth
| Metric | FY24 | FY25 |
|---|---|---|
| Operating Revenue | ₹1,420.2 crore | ₹1,617.4 crore (up 13.9%) |
| Net Loss | ₹380.3 crore | ₹336.6 crore (down 11.5%) |
(Sourced from Entrackr)
Notably, Rebel Foods’ EBITDA loss narrowed sharply by 25.7% to ₹127.6 crore in FY25, with its EBITDA margin improving 400 basis points to -8%, and unit economics tightening to ₹1.23 spent for every rupee of revenue earned, down from ₹1.31 the year before. (Whalesbook; Entrackr) Still, growth has decelerated over the past two fiscal years compared to the company’s earlier high-velocity years, reflecting sector-wide deceleration in cloud kitchens. (IPO Central)
Rebel Foods vs Competitors
Rebel Foods competes with Curefoods and Wow! Momo in India’s cloud kitchen space, and with Zomato’s Blinkit Bistro and Swiggy’s SNACC in the emerging 15-minute food delivery category through its new QuickiES app. (Whalesbook) Unlike quick-commerce-first rivals entering food delivery, Rebel Foods’ advantage lies in its decade of experience running delivery-only kitchens at scale across dozens of brands.
Key Takeaways
- Jaydeep Barman and Kallol Banerjee founded Faasos in 2004 and formally incorporated Rebel Foods in 2011, initially as a physical QSR chain.
- The company pivoted entirely to a delivery-only, cloud-kitchen model by 2016 after rising rents made its storefront model hard to scale.
- Rebel Foods became India’s first cloud kitchen unicorn in 2021 and has raised roughly $803 million to date.
- FY25 revenue grew 13.9% to ₹1,617.4 crore, while losses narrowed 11.5% to ₹336.6 crore amid improving unit economics.
- The company is targeting an IPO in FY26 and has launched QuickiES to compete in 15-minute food delivery.
FAQs
Who founded Rebel Foods?
Jaydeep Barman and Kallol Banerjee founded Faasos in 2004 and formally incorporated it as Rebel Foods in 2011.
Is Rebel Foods profitable?
Not yet, though losses have narrowed for two consecutive years as the company improves unit economics ahead of a planned IPO.
How much funding has Rebel Foods raised?
Approximately $803 million to date, reaching a valuation of around $1.4-1.6 billion.
Who are Rebel Foods’ competitors?
Curefoods and Wow! Momo in cloud kitchens, and Blinkit Bistro and Swiggy SNACC in fast food delivery.
© The Founder Nation | Written by TFN Research Desk
