Sushant Goel steps down as Third Wave Coffee CEO; Rajat Luthra to replace him

Third Wave Coffee’s co-founder and chief executive officer Sushant Goel has stepped down as the firm’s CEO role and transitioned to a board member. KFC India and Nepal CEO Rajat Luthra will replace Goel, effective from the first quarter of the next fiscal year (FY25). The development has come after six months of the firm’s $35 million worth Series C round.

Sushant will continue to contribute towards the growth and development of the rapidly expanding Indian coffee brand, the company said in a press release.

Luthra is a veteran across FMCG and QSR sectors with over three decade experience. He has been driving Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC) India & Nepal operations for over the past 10 years.

Founded by Ayush Bathwal, Anirudh Sharma and Goel, Third Wave claims to have over 100 outlets across Delhi (NCR), Bengaluru among others. It raised $35 million from Creaegis and WestBridge Capital in Sep 2023.

According to startup data intelligence platform TheKredible, WestBridge is the largest stakeholder in the company with 32.62% followed by the three co-founder who command 26.03%. Creaegis holds 13.61 % whereas  Udaan’s co-founder Sujeet Kumar has 5.64% stakes.

Third Wave is yet to report FY23 financials but its operating revenue grew 2.3X to Rs 31.75 crore in FY22. Its losses soared 3.3X to Rs 14.5 crore in the same period (FY22).