Nature’s Basket Q2 revenue falls 17%, EBITDA loss reaches Rs 7 crore

Natures Basket Limited reported Rs 56.5 crore of revenue from operations for the three months ended September 30, 2026, a 17% year-on-year decline, while its EBITDA loss widened to Rs 7 crore and gross margin fell 408 basis points to 23.5%.

Why did Nature’s Basket’s Q2 EBITDA loss widen?

Nature’s Basket’s EBITDA loss widened because its gross margin declined substantially while employee and other expenses did not fall in line with revenue. Revenue from operations fell to Rs 56.5 crore in the three months ended September 30, 2026, from Rs 67.9 crore a year earlier, and gross margin fell by Rs 5.4 crore to Rs 13.3 crore.

Cost of goods sold decreased 12% year on year to Rs 43.2 crore, a slower rate of decline than the 17% fall in revenue. As a result, gross margin contracted from 27.6% to 23.5%. Employee expenses were Rs 7.8 crore against Rs 7.7 crore a year earlier, while other expenses rose 10% to Rs 13.6 crore from Rs 12.3 crore.

Other income increased to Rs 1.2 crore from Rs 0.8 crore, but this did not offset the reduction in gross margin. Depreciation declined to Rs 8.5 crore from Rs 8.8 crore, whereas finance costs increased to Rs 8.4 crore from Rs 8.1 crore. Profit before tax and profit after tax were both losses of Rs 23.9 crore, compared with losses of Rs 17.6 crore in the prior-year quarter.

How did Nature’s Basket perform versus the preceding quarter?

Nature’s Basket’s Q2 result weakened sequentially, with revenue declining 5% from Rs 59.3 crore in the quarter ended June 30, 2026, and EBITDA loss increasing from Rs 2.6 crore. Gross margin fell from Rs 16.3 crore to Rs 13.3 crore, while the gross-margin rate declined 390 basis points from 27.4% to 23.5%.

Cost of goods sold was broadly unchanged at Rs 43.2 crore in Q2 versus Rs 43.1 crore in Q1, despite the Rs 2.8 crore reduction in revenue. Employee expenses increased by Rs 0.1 crore to Rs 7.8 crore and other expenses rose by Rs 1.7 crore to Rs 13.6 crore. Other income rose to Rs 1.2 crore from Rs 0.8 crore, but EBITDA margin declined to negative 12.3% from negative 4.3%.

The movement continued below EBITDA, as the loss before tax widened by Rs 4.4 crore to Rs 23.9 crore from Rs 19.5 crore. Profit-before-tax margin moved to negative 42.3% from negative 32.9%, while depreciation was Rs 8.5 crore versus Rs 8.6 crore and finance costs remained Rs 8.4 crore in both quarters.

What does Nature’s Basket’s six-month result show?

Nature’s Basket recorded an EBITDA loss of Rs 9.5 crore for the six months ended September 30, 2026, compared with EBITDA of Rs 0.2 crore in the corresponding previous-year period. Revenue declined 15% to Rs 115.8 crore from Rs 136.5 crore, while gross margin fell by Rs 8.6 crore to Rs 29.5 crore.

The six-month gross-margin rate was 25.5%, down 240 basis points from 27.9% a year earlier. Cost of goods sold declined to Rs 86.3 crore from Rs 98.5 crore, employee expenses increased to Rs 15.5 crore from Rs 15.3 crore, and other expenses decreased to Rs 25.5 crore from Rs 26.8 crore.

The loss before tax and loss after tax were each Rs 43.4 crore for the six-month period, compared with Rs 36.6 crore in the prior-year period. Depreciation declined to Rs 17.1 crore from Rs 20.4 crore, but finance costs increased to Rs 16.8 crore from Rs 16.4 crore. EBITDA margin was negative 8.2%, compared with positive 0.2% a year earlier, and profit-before-tax margin was negative 37.5% versus negative 26.8%.

Did Nature’s Basket’s store base and marketing activity change?

Nature’s Basket ended September 30, 2026 with 30 stores and 1.16 lakh square feet of trading area, compared with 31 stores and 1.18 lakh square feet a year earlier. It added no stores in either Q2 or the six months ended September 30, 2026, whereas one store and 0.06 lakh square feet had been added in the comparable prior-year periods.

The network also fell by one store from 31 at June 30, 2026 to 30 at September 30, 2026, while trading area decreased by 0.02 lakh square feet. The presentation does not disclose the location, timing or commercial rationale for the reduction, and does not quantify its contribution to the quarterly revenue decline.

Nature’s Basket continued experiential and digital campaigns during July through September. July’s Taste of Thailand Fest included 18 offline experiences and generated more than 250,000 Instagram views, including more than 190,000 influencer-generated views. In August, the PVR collaboration generated more than 700,000 views and 639 new followers, while the brand reported 1 million organic Instagram views for the first time in September.

Conclusion

Nature’s Basket’s Q2 decline covered sales, gross margin and operating profitability. Revenue declined 17% year on year, the gross-margin rate fell 408 basis points to 23.5%, and EBITDA loss reached Rs 7 crore. The six-month result showed the same direction, with revenue down to Rs 115.8 crore and EBITDA changing from a Rs 0.2 crore profit to a Rs 9.5 crore loss.

The next reported indicators to watch are revenue, gross-margin rate, other expenses, store count and trading area after the network ended Q2 with 30 stores and no additions in the first half. The presentation details July-to-September marketing activity, including 1 million organic Instagram views in September, but discloses no revenue target, margin target or store-expansion plan for Nature’s Basket.