Buying meat and seafood in India traditionally meant visiting a neighbourhood butcher or fish market. Product quality, hygiene, cuts and pricing could vary from one seller to another. Licious built its business by bringing greater standardisation, packaging and doorstep delivery to this largely unorganised market.
Customers can order chicken, mutton, fish, seafood, eggs, cold cuts and ready-to-cook products through the Licious website and app. The company also reaches customers through physical retail stores in selected locations.
Licious does not operate merely as a listing platform connecting buyers with independent meat sellers. It controls important parts of the process, including sourcing, processing, quality checks, packaging, cold-chain storage and delivery. It mainly makes money by selling these products at prices that cover procurement and operating costs while leaving a retail margin.
Licious Company Quick Overview
| Particular | Details |
| Brand | Licious |
| Legal company | Delightful Gourmet Private Limited |
| Founded | 2015 |
| Founders | Abhay Hanjura and Vivek Gupta |
| Headquarters | Bengaluru, Karnataka |
| Business type | Omnichannel meat and seafood retailer |
| Main categories | Chicken, mutton, fish, seafood, eggs and cold cuts |
| Value-added products | Ready-to-cook and ready-to-eat foods |
| Main sales channels | Website, app and physical stores |
| Operating model | Inventory-led and vertically integrated |
| Latest widely reported FY24 revenue | Around ₹685 crore |
| Latest widely reported FY24 loss | Around ₹294 crore |
The financial figures above are based on widely reported FY24 company filings. Licious is privately held, so current financial information is not released as regularly as it is for listed companies.
What Is Licious’s Business Model?
Licious follows an inventory-led, direct-to-consumer retail model. It procures meat and seafood through farmers, livestock suppliers, fisheries and other sourcing partners. Products are then processed, cut, cleaned, packaged and stored under controlled conditions before reaching customers.
Because Licious handles the actual products, it records the selling value of orders as revenue. This differs from a marketplace that may record only the commission charged to an outside seller.
The company’s main promise is not simply convenience. It also sells consistency. Customers can choose a specific cut, pack size and product category instead of depending on what is available at a local shop.
Licious combines this digital ordering system with physical stores. The online platform provides convenience and a larger catalogue, while stores allow customers to inspect products and purchase immediately.
How Does Licious Make Money?
1. Sale of Fresh Meat
Fresh meat is the foundation of the business. Licious sells whole chicken, curry cuts, boneless meat, chicken breasts, drumsticks, mutton and other specialised cuts.
The company earns the difference between the product’s selling price and the total cost of sourcing, processing, packaging, storage and delivery.
Different cuts can have different margins. Boneless meat, cleaned portions and precisely cut products may command higher prices than an unprocessed whole bird because the customer is also paying for convenience and reduced preparation time.
Licious must still manage the unused portions of each animal carefully. Poor demand forecasting can increase wastage and reduce the overall margin.
2. Fish and Seafood Sales
Licious sells freshwater fish, sea fish, prawns, crabs and other seafood products. The company cleans and portions eligible products before packaging them for customers.
Seafood can carry higher selling prices, but it is also highly perishable. Licious must maintain temperature controls from procurement until delivery.
The company’s earnings depend on sourcing products at competitive prices, reducing spoilage and charging enough to cover cleaning, packaging and cold-chain costs.
Availability may change according to season, weather, fishing conditions and location. These factors can also affect the price paid by customers.
3. Ready-to-Cook Products
Ready-to-cook products are an important revenue source because they involve more processing and branding than ordinary raw meat.
This category may include:
- Marinated chicken
- Kebabs and tikkas
- Spiced meat
- Burger patties
- Sausages
- Seekh kebabs
- Breakfast products
Customers pay for the meat as well as the marinade, recipe, preparation and time saved in the kitchen.
These products can offer better margins than basic cuts because they are less directly comparable with the price charged by a local butcher. They also allow Licious to create distinctive flavours and encourage customers to try several products.
4. Cold Cuts and Ready-to-Eat Foods
Licious sells cold cuts and selected ready-to-eat items such as salami, sausages, spreads and cooked meat products.
Processed foods can have a longer usable life than fresh meat when packaged and stored correctly. They also allow Licious to reach customers looking for breakfast, snacks and quick meals rather than ingredients for traditional cooking.
The company earns through product margins after paying for meat, seasoning, processing, packaging, storage and distribution.
5. Eggs and Complementary Products
Eggs are a frequently purchased category that can bring customers back to the platform regularly. Although the amount earned from one egg order may be lower than a large mutton or seafood order, frequent purchases help maintain customer engagement.
Complementary products can also increase the average basket value. A customer ordering chicken may add eggs, sausages or ready-to-cook kebabs to the same order.
A larger basket improves delivery economics because the fulfilment cost is spread across more products.
6. Direct Online Sales
Licious sells directly through its website and mobile app. This allows the company to control product presentation, pricing, customer information and recommendations.
The app can suggest products based on past purchases. It can also promote bundles, new categories and higher-value products.
Direct ordering reduces dependence on outside marketplaces. However, Licious must pay for technology, payment processing, digital marketing, customer support and order fulfilment.
The company may also collect delivery or handling charges on eligible orders. These charges help recover part of the last-mile cost but are not the main foundation of the business.
7. Physical Retail Stores
Licious has expanded into physical retail through stores operating under its own brand and associated offline formats.
Stores serve customers who want to inspect products or make an immediate purchase. They can also build trust among people who are hesitant to buy meat entirely through an app.
Store sales generate normal retail margins, but physical outlets create additional expenses such as rent, refrigeration, employees, electricity and local inventory.
The business must generate enough daily sales at each location to cover these fixed costs.
8. Product Bundles and Larger Orders
Licious can increase revenue by offering product combinations for families, parties, barbecues and special occasions.
A bundle may contain several cuts, marinades or ready-to-cook products at one combined price. This encourages customers to spend more in one transaction.
Larger orders improve delivery efficiency because the cost of sending one rider is distributed across a higher order value. However, discounts on bundles must be controlled so they do not eliminate the additional margin.
Licious’s Major Operating Costs
Meat and seafood retail has high operating costs because products are perishable and require careful handling.
The main expenses include:
- Livestock, meat and seafood procurement
- Processing and cutting facilities
- Refrigeration and cold storage
- Temperature-controlled transportation
- Packaging materials
- Delivery-partner payments
- Fulfilment-centre rent
- Employee salaries
- Product testing and quality control
- Advertising and customer discounts
- Refunds, wastage and spoilage
Unlike packaged groceries, fresh meat cannot remain in storage indefinitely. Licious must accurately predict local demand and move inventory quickly.
Why the Model Can Become Profitable
Meat and eggs are repeat-purchase categories. A satisfied household may order several times each month, creating more lifetime value than a business selling products purchased only occasionally.
Ready-to-cook foods, specialised cuts and branded processed products can also provide better margins than basic raw meat.
Profitability improves when Licious receives many orders within the same neighbourhood. Delivery routes become more efficient, fulfilment centres process more orders and fixed cold-storage expenses are spread across larger volumes.
The company must increase repeat purchases without depending excessively on discounts. Customers attracted only by promotional prices may switch to another platform when the offer ends.
Main Challenges in Licious’s Business Model
Maintaining freshness and food safety is the biggest challenge. One quality problem can seriously affect customer trust.
Licious also competes with local butchers, supermarkets, specialist meat stores and quick-commerce platforms. Local sellers may offer lower prices because they have simpler packaging and delivery operations.
Demand forecasting is difficult because unsold meat can lead to wastage. At the same time, insufficient stock can result in cancellations and disappointed customers.
The company must also manage different food habits, regional cuts and local preferences across cities. A product popular in Bengaluru may not receive the same demand in Delhi or Kolkata.
FAQs
Q1. Does Licious own poultry farms and fisheries?
Licious does not need to own every farm or fishing operation. It works with sourcing partners and suppliers while controlling specifications, processing, quality checks and final distribution.
Q2. Is Licious a marketplace like Amazon?
No. Licious mainly follows an inventory-led model. It handles and sells the products rather than simply allowing independent meat shops to list items and fulfil orders themselves.
Q3. Are all Licious products frozen?
No. The company sells products across fresh, chilled, frozen and processed categories. The storage condition depends on the particular item and its packaging requirements.
Q4. Why can Licious products cost more than local-market meat?
The final price may include cleaning, precise cutting, packaging, quality controls, refrigeration, delivery and brand-related operating expenses. Local prices and product quality can still vary considerably.
Q5. Does Licious earn the entire order value as profit?
No. Most of the amount collected must pay for the meat, processing, packaging, cold storage, employees and delivery. Only the amount remaining after all expenses becomes profit.
Conclusion
Licious makes most of its money by selling fresh meat, fish, seafood, eggs and value-added products directly to customers. Ready-to-cook foods, cold cuts, product bundles and physical-store sales provide additional revenue.
Its vertically integrated model gives the company greater control over sourcing, processing, packaging and delivery. This helps it offer consistency but also creates high cold-chain, inventory and quality-control expenses.
Long-term success will depend on increasing repeat purchases, improving order density and reducing wastage. Licious must convince customers that better hygiene, reliable cuts and doorstep convenience justify the price difference from traditional meat shops.
