Building Nepal’s Modern Dairy Ecosystem

From 200 liters to 7,000 liters per day—a partnership built on trust, innovation, and impact

Visionary Leadership: The Founders of Delish Dairies

CA. Sandeep Poudel (Managing Director & Co-Founder)

Chartered Accountant (ICAI, ICAN) with expertise in business management, operations, and financial management.

Surya Bahadur Karki (Co-Founder)

Social entrepreneur (Forbes Asia 30 Under 30) with expertise in sales and marketing; Founding CEO of Christel House Nepal.

Binaya Bogati (Co-Founder)

Researcher and innovation specialist; Deputy CEO of United World Schools Global; Former UN-IOM, UN-OCHA, Deloitte.

“The vision behind Delish was to introduce high-quality, value-added dairy products in Nepal and bring global innovations, such as Greek yogurt, to Nepali consumers. Looking back, we have remained true to our three-word philosophy, which formed the core pillars of Delish: Innovation, Healthy, and Delicious. And thus, Delish was born.”

– Sandeep Paudel, MD

The Investment Case

Greek yogurt did not exist in the market six years ago (2020). The sector was dominated by commodity products with no premium health-focused options. Inconsistent quality standards and an absence of branded, value-added offerings created a clear gap between what consumers wanted and what was available in the market.

  • Rapid Urbanization: Urban consumption habits are spreading to smaller towns, creating new market opportunities
  • Health Consciousness: Growing awareness of nutrition and balanced diets is driving demand for premium dairy
  • Digital Connectivity: Increased internet access, enabling brands to reach consumers at unprecedented scale
  • Import Substitution: Opportunity to build domestic brands that compete with imported products
  • Product Innovation: Introducing Nepal’s first Greek yogurt alongside elevated traditional dairy products
  • Quality Standards: Maintaining rigorous food safety protocols with DFTQC certification and in-house laboratory testing
  • Local Sourcing: Building reliable partnerships with 1,000+ local farmers through cooperative-based procurement
  • Premium Positioning: Combining modern innovation with authentic local dairy tradition
  • Distribution Scale: Expanding from Chitwan to pan-Nepal presence across major cities and districts

Core Philosophy

Innovation

Nepal’s first Greek Yogurt. Continously pushing the boundaries of dairy, from flavoured milks to high tech farm infrastructure.

Healthy

Zero preservatives. Zero artificial flavours or sweeteners. Real fruit pulp. Non-GMO. DFTQC certified. Tested in-house before every release.

Delicious

Every product crafted so taste and nutrition go hand in hand, from fitness centres to school lunch boxes to family tables.

Community

Committed to the farmers, cooperatives, and communities in our supply chain, from Chitwan's Bharatpur region to every Nepali household.

Our Mission

To build a stronger, more innovative dairy ecosystem in Nepal that benefits consumers, farmers, and the entire economy

Key Achievements

NIBL Equity Partners invested in Delish during its early growth phase when the company had validated its products and was preparing for the next stage of expansion.

 The investment was driven by: a strong founding team with complementary expertise, proven product-market fit with Nepal’s first Greek yogurt, a scalable business model with clear growth trajectory, and an opportunity to strengthen Nepal’s domestic dairy value chain.

How NIBL Equity Partners Helped Delish

Building Delish into a national dairy platform

NIBL Equity Partners supported Delish’s transition from a regional nutritional brand into a scalable PAN-Nepal dairy platform through strategic guidance, governance frameworks, and institutional discipline. The partnership enabled long-term expansion planning, including the vision for Nepal’s first high-tech enabled dairy farm.

Strategic Guidance

PAN-Nepal Expansion

Governance Frameworks

Long-term Institutional Growth

Scaling operations without compromising quality

Operational systems were strengthened across production, quality control, and supply chain management to support sustainable scaling.

Delish also enhanced farmer engagement and modernized R&D capabilities to improve consistency, efficiency, and continuous innovation.

Value Creation

Quality Control Systems

Supply Chain Optimization

Modernized R&D

Investing ahead of market demand

Growth capital enabled Delish to expand processing capacity from 200 liters per day to 7,000 liters per day while supporting nationwide distribution expansion. The investment also financed the establishment of the Illam cheese facility alongside upgrades in equipment and laboratory infrastructure.

Capital for Growth

200L → 7,000L Per Day

Illam Cheese Facility

Modern Processing Infrastructure

Stronger farmer economics created lasting resilience

Delish strengthened its dairy value chain through a cooperative-led milk procurement model with transparent pricing and premium payments for quality production.

Farmer training programs on productivity, animal health, and hygiene practices helped improve rural livelihoods while creating more stable income opportunities.

Value Chain Impact

NPR 1–3 Premium Per Liter

Cooperative Procurement
Model

Stable Rural Livelihoods

“More than funding, NIBL EP has added value through governance frameworks and a long-term institutional perspective that helps strengthen decision-making. The key persons at NIBL PE have constantly provided us with motivation, support and mentorship which could shape any young entrepreneur to future leaders.”

– Sandeep Paudel, MD

Revenue Growth Trajectory

Revenue more than doubled, growing 139% over the period

Revenue more than doubled, growing 139% over the period.

Revenue Growth

65% to 70%

YoY

Revenue Growth

35x

Increase

(200 → 7,000 liters/day)

Market Reach

PAN-Nepal
distribution

Kathmandu

Chitwan

News

Learn how we have been propelling companies forward.

Industry accolades

NYEF Best Startup
Award (2022)

Best Emerging Startup by New Business Age (2023)

Best Startup at HRM Awards for Corporate Excellence (2024)

Case Study Report

Get the Full Case Study Report