MegaBrands · Ice cream and frozen desserts

Kwality Wall’s: How India’s Everyday Ice Cream Brand Began a New Chapter on Its Own

Kwality Wall’s, selected as the Mega Brand for Ice cream and frozen desserts by the Business Intelligence Unit of WCRC, has roots in India going back to 1994. In 2026 it became the lead brand of a listed, ice-cream-only company, which reported 16.6% organic sales growth for April to June 2026.

By WCRC Leaders Editorial · Published October 2026 · 8 min read

At a glance

Kwality Wall’s is the ice cream brand of Kwality Wall’s (India) Limited (KWIL), which also holds Cornetto and Magnum in India. The business was demerged from Hindustan Unilever on 1 December 2025, listed on BSE and NSE on 16 February 2026, and is now majority owned by The Magnum Ice Cream Company. It is led by Chairperson Abhijit Bhattacharya and Deputy Managing Director Chitrank Goel. It is the Mega Brand for Ice cream and frozen desserts in WCRC MegaBrands.

Kwality Wall’s has spent three decades as the ice cream name on India’s corner-shop freezers, and 2026 gave it a fresh start. The brand that Hindustan Unilever built from 1994 is now the lead brand of a company that does nothing but ice cream. It has its own board, its own listing and a new controlling owner that is itself a global ice cream specialist.

The story of the modern brand begins in 1994. That year, according to Hindustan Unilever’s own chronology, the company “acquires Kwality and Milkfood 100% brandnames and distribution assets” and “introduces Wall’s”. The two names were later joined as Kwality Wall’s. Kwality Wall’s (India) Limited today speaks of “a proud 70-year legacy”.

The past two years changed who owns it. Hindustan Unilever’s board approved a plan in January 2025 to demerge the ice cream business into Kwality Wall’s (India) Limited, and the demerger took effect on 1 December 2025. KWIL listed on BSE and NSE on 16 February 2026. On 30 March 2026, The Magnum Ice Cream Company completed the purchase of a 61.9% controlling stake from Unilever.

WCRC MegaBrands covers 501 categories in India and selects one benchmark brand in each. It looks at brands through five pillars: Brand Positioning & Recall; Consumer Trust & Sentiment; Product, Innovation & Delivery; Sustainability, Governance & ESG; and Digital & Financial Soundness. Kwality Wall’s has been selected as the Mega Brand for Ice cream and frozen desserts by the Business Intelligence Unit of WCRC (World Centre for Research and Consulting). Here is how Kwality Wall’s lines up with each pillar.

Pillar 1: How Kwality Wall’s Owns Share of Mind

Brand Positioning & Recall · weighted 28% in the MegaBrands framework · How MegaBrands measures this

Kwality Wall’s sells a simple idea. The brand’s line is “Life tastes better with ice cream”, and the company’s homepage says “we take pleasure seriously”. It speaks of turning “ordinary moments into lasting memories”, which puts the brand in everyday life rather than grand occasions.

The brand says as much about itself. Its own brand page describes Kwality Wall’s as “not just a brand; it is a deeply personal memory for millions of Indians”, and says its family packs hold a place in “India’s most cherished everyday rituals”. The brand page points to its heart logo as the visual shortcut to that memory.

Recall also comes from a clear family of names. Under the Kwality Wall’s umbrella sit Feast, Twister and Chuski. Alongside them, KWIL sells the Kulfeez range and owns Cornetto and Magnum, which launched in India in 2013. Together they cover everything from a quick treat to a premium bar.

The newest work keeps the brand in view. In 2026, Magnum launched Caramel Pop in India with outdoor advertising in major cities. “Magnum has always reflected the evolving aspirations of India’s consumers,” said Monosij Bandyopadhyay, Chief Marketing Officer of KWIL.

Pillar 2: Why India Trusts Kwality Wall’s

Consumer Trust & Sentiment · weighted 26% in the MegaBrands framework · How MegaBrands measures this

Trust in an ice cream brand starts with what is inside the cup. In 2026, Kwality Wall’s made a visible change there. KWIL says it “commenced the transition of its In-home portfolio to a dairy-based range with a richer, creamier recipe”. The brand page describes the new range as coming “with improved recipes and milk at the heart of every scoop”.

The new range was announced on 29 April 2026. It comes in 500 ml and 700 ml tubs and party packs, priced from Rs 105 to Rs 339, with flavours such as Hawaiian Sundae and Kesar Bhog that sit beside the classics. “At Kwality Wall’s, we are constantly pushing the boundaries of innovation to deliver richer, more indulgent experiences to our consumers,” said Chitrank Goel, Deputy Managing Director, at the launch.

There is a second signal of trust in the way demand has grown. In the April to June 2026 quarter, KWIL’s organic sales grew 16.6%. Organic volume grew 14.9%, while organic price growth was only 1.5%. In plain terms, growth came mostly from more ice cream being bought, not from charging more for it.

The company also says it is widening choice for people watching what they eat. Its sustainability page points to “healthier options such as reduced-sugar recipes and mini-portion formats”.

Pillar 3: The Cold Chain Behind Every Kwality Wall’s Cone

Product, Innovation & Delivery · weighted 20% in the MegaBrands framework · How MegaBrands measures this

Ice cream is a demanding food to deliver. It must stay frozen from factory to freezer to hand. Kwality Wall’s has built a network for exactly that. When KWIL listed in February 2026, the company said its products were present in over 400 cities and reached consumers through more than 2 lakh outlets and over 15,000 push carts.

Push carts give the brand a presence on the street, beyond the shop counter. In shops, the work is about cabinets. KWIL’s results for the April to June 2026 quarter credit cabinet deployment for deeper retail reach, alongside wider availability in general trade and better execution in modern trade.

Innovation is a steady part of the work. KWIL’s August 2026 results release says it introduced “over 31 innovations and renovations” during the first six months of the year. The launches it names run across the range: Magnum Caramel Pop and Magnum Pistachio at the premium end, Cornetto Almond Crunch, a growing Kulfeez portfolio, and Hawaiian Nut Sundae and Kesar Bhog in the in-home range.

Chitrank Goel has set out the direction plainly: “We are focused on accelerating premiumisation in India by building a strong, future-ready portfolio.” The portfolio pairs Indian flavours such as kesar and kulfi with global formats such as the cone and the chocolate-coated bar.

Pillar 4: Kwality Wall’s Under Its Own Board

Sustainability, Governance & ESG · weighted 16% in the MegaBrands framework · How MegaBrands measures this

The demerger gave Kwality Wall’s something it never had inside a larger group: a board of its own. KWIL’s leadership page lists eight directors. Abhijit Bhattacharya, Chief Financial Officer of The Magnum Ice Cream Company, is Non-Executive Chairperson. Chitrank Goel, Deputy Managing Director, and Prashant Premrajka, Chief Financial Officer, are executive directors. Tahir Toloy Tanridagli, who leads the Magnum Ice Cream Company’s markets across the Middle East, Turkey, Africa, Israel and South Asia, is a non-executive director.

Four independent directors complete the board: Madhavan Hariharan, Ravindra Pisharody, Shukla Wassan and JV Raman. They chair the audit, the nomination and remuneration, and the stakeholders relationship committees. As a listed company, KWIL now reports its results every quarter.

The ownership position is also clear. After buying its 61.9% stake, The Magnum Ice Cream Company made a mandatory tender offer to public shareholders, and KWIL continues to trade on BSE and NSE as a majority-owned subsidiary of the group.

On the environment, the company’s sustainability page sets out its commitments. It states an ambition to reach Net Zero emissions by 2050 and says a fuller climate strategy is still being developed. It lists work on the energy efficiency of ice cream cabinets, which matter in a business built on freezers, and says it is collaborating with suppliers to reduce emissions across its value chain, where ingredients such as dairy and cocoa are a source. It also says it sources key ingredients “responsibly and in line with evolving regulations” and points to targeted programmes to protect workers in its supply chain.

Pillar 5: Kwality Wall’s Growth With Financial Strength

Digital & Financial Soundness · weighted 10% in the MegaBrands framework · How MegaBrands measures this

Kwality Wall’s enters its independent life with momentum. In FY2023-24, the latest year cited when the demerger was announced, Hindustan Unilever’s ice cream business recorded a turnover of Rs 1,595 crore, about 2.7% of the parent’s standalone turnover. Hindustan Unilever said a separate company would give the business focused management and the flexibility to follow strategies suited to ice cream. When the plan was announced in January 2025, Rohit Jawa, then CEO and Managing Director of Hindustan Unilever, said: “Our ice cream category is a high-growth business with iconic brands such as Kwality Wall’s, Cornetto and Magnum, operating in an attractive segment.”

In April to June 2026, the first full quarter after the change of ownership, KWIL reported revenue of Rs 8,678 million (about Rs 868 crore), organic sales growth of 16.6% and EBITDA before exceptional items of Rs 1,049 million (about Rs 105 crore). Its EBITDA margin was 12.1%, up 166 basis points on the year before. “We continued to stabilise our operations post-demerger and delivered organic sales growth of 16.6%, with a healthy balance of organic volume (OVG +14.9%) and organic price (OPG +1.5%),” said Chitrank Goel.

Quick commerce is now a growth engine. KWIL says the channel delivered double-digit growth in the quarter, and the new in-home range is sold through quick commerce as well as shops. The company links the rise of eating ice cream at home to better cold chain infrastructure, wider retail penetration and quick commerce, which it says has helped post-dinner impulse purchases.

The new owner sees room to grow. “This transaction strengthens TMICC’s presence in one of the world’s fastest-growing, under-penetrated ice cream markets,” said Abhijit Bhattacharya, Chief Financial Officer of The Magnum Ice Cream Company and now KWIL’s Chairperson, when the stake purchase closed in March 2026.

The Kwality Wall’s Benchmark

Every category has leaders. A MegaBrand is the brand its category is measured against. Kwality Wall’s holds that place in Indian ice cream because its record holds up across all five pillars. It has roots in India going back to 1994 and a clear family of products. It has a delivery network that runs from freezer cabinets to push carts in over 400 cities. Its new company has a board of its own, and it has started life as a listed company with volume-led growth.

Above all, Kwality Wall’s shows that a long-loved brand can change its owner and its recipes and keep growing. Milk-based family packs and a steady flow of new flavours show a brand still investing in what goes into the cup.

Powerfacts

More Questions About Kwality Wall’s

About Kwality Wall’s Kwality Wall’s is the ice cream brand of Kwality Wall’s (India) Limited, which also owns Cornetto and Magnum in India. The business was demerged from Hindustan Unilever on 1 December 2025, listed on BSE and NSE on 16 February 2026, and is majority owned by The Magnum Ice Cream Company. It reaches consumers in over 400 cities through more than 2 lakh outlets and 15,000+ push carts. Kwality Wall’s has been selected as the Mega Brand for Ice cream and frozen desserts by the Business Intelligence Unit of WCRC (World Centre for Research and Consulting).