Who really makes money on a ₹1000 bottle of liquor?

Who really makes money on a ₹1000 bottle of liquor?

The Indian alcohol industry is massive.
It is currently valued at over $64 Billion (₹5 Lakh Crore).

But if you buy a bottle of whisky for ₹1,000, who is actually getting rich?
You probably think the liquor company is taking home ₹600 in profit.

You are completely wrong.

Here is the real math behind every single bottle of alcohol sold in India:

1. The Manufacturer (₹150 - ₹200)
The company that actually distills the liquor, buys the glass bottle, and pays for the marketing only gets about ₹150 to ₹200 from that ₹1000 bottle.

After paying for raw materials and employees, their actual Profit Margin Profit Margin = The exact amount of money a company keeps in its pocket after paying all its bills is only around 10% to 15%.

2. The Shop Owner (₹50 - ₹100)
The guy running the liquor shop has extremely low margins.

A retailer typically only makes 5% to 10% on a bottle. That means they only keep ₹50 to ₹100.

They rely on a High-Volume Business High-Volume Business = Selling a huge amount of cheap products to make enough money to survive just to pay their store rent.

3. The Real Winner: State Governments (₹700+)
If the company and the shop owner only take ₹300 total, where does the remaining ₹700 go?
"Taxes".

Alcohol is completely exempt from standard GST GST = The standard national tax applied to almost everything else you buy in India.

Instead, state governments control alcohol taxes directly.

Depending on which state you live in, 50% to 75% of the price of every bottle goes straight to the government as "Excise Duty."

The liquor companies are not the ones getting ridiculously rich.

The real "majority shareholder" of the alcohol industry is the government itself.

✍🏻 Mantra Joshi

Spotted a wrong number or something out of date? Tell me and I'll fix it.