Inside Skippi Ice Pops: How IP Strategy Turned Nostalgia into a National Brand

Sometimes the simplest of childhood memories can spark a million-dollar business. That’s exactly what happened with Ravi and Anuja Kabra, the husband-wife duo behind Skippi Ice Pops.

If you grew up in India in the 80s, 90s, or even early 2000s, you probably remember those colourful ice pops sold outside schools, in playgrounds, or by your local shopkeeper. They were cheap, fun, and yet refreshing. But they were also unbranded, often unhygienic, and inconsistent in quality. Over the years, they quietly disappeared from the mainstream. In nostalgia, the Kabras saw a chance. They transformed the common ice pop into a branded, hygienically packaged, and safe product that would appeal to both parents and kids. Thus, Kabra Global Products Pvt. Ltd., the parent company of Skippi Ice Pops, was established.

Their big moment came in Shark Tank India Season 1 (2021), where they pitched as the first-ever ice popsicle brand on the show. What made their pitch legendary was that they became the first company to bag investment from all five Sharks. They were valued at ₹1 crore for 15% equity. The Sharks were sold on the simplicity of the idea, the nostalgia factor, and most importantly, on their clarity of execution. Skippi’s USP is simple but powerful:

• Branded, hygienic, FSSAI-approved ice pops.
• Scalable and reasonably priced in India’s hot climate; 
• Kid-friendly flavours and packaging.

They revived a long-forgotten classic in a market dominated by ice cream and colas, but this time they focused on compliance and branding.

Portfolio of Intellectual Property (IP)

Using intellectual property filings to safeguard their packaging and brand name was one of Skippi’s best early decisions. In FMCG, branding is everything. Without IP, anyone could copy the name, replicate the colours, and ride on your marketing spend. Here’s a quick look at their IP filings:

Trademark	Class	Description	Application No.	Date	Proprietor	Status
Skippi Ice Pops (Wordmark)	35	Wholesale and retail services related to ice pops	4916551	22 Mar 2021	Kabra Global Products Pvt. Ltd.	Registered
Skippi (Logo + Label)	30	Flavoured ice pops, ice cream, confectionery	4916548	22 Mar 2021	Kabra Global Products Pvt. Ltd.	Registered
Skippi Ice Pops (Device)	30	Frozen desserts & ice pops	4916549	22 Mar 2021	Kabra Global Products Pvt. Ltd.	Registered

What this means is:

• Class 30 covers food products (ice pops, frozen desserts).
• Class 35 covers retail and wholesale services.

So not only is the name “Skippi Ice Pops” legally theirs, but also the retail service under which it is sold. While trademarks protect the brand, copyrights protect the creatives. Skippi holds copyrights in:

• It’s vibrant packaging designs.
• Marketing jingles, product images, and digital campaigns.
• Design and Patent Potential

Their tube-format stickless packaging is registered as a distinct design to stop competitors from replicating its packaging with its mascot and distinctive appearance. But their recipes cannot be patented because ice pops are not novel.

Why IP matters for Skippi:

In a low-barrier FMCG space, strong IP ensures customer trust and deters copycats. Imagine if multiple small players started selling “Skippi-style” popsicles without IP protection, the brand would lose exclusivity. The Kabras were therefore smart enough to secure their brand name before going on to Shark Tank as it reassured the Sharks as well.

Business Contracts They Likely Use

Beneath the colourful packaging and whimsical branding is a web of legally binding contracts that run the business safely and effectively.

• Supplier Contracts: Skippi requires a steady supply of high-quality raw materials like fruit concentrates, purified water, sugar, and those unique plastic tubes. Contracts with their suppliers secure prices and fluctuations, quality levels, and delivery timelines. This is so that each pop is exactly the same and quality-controlled.
• Distribution and Franchise Agreements: To reach a freezer in your vicinity, Skippi uses an extensive system of distributors. These agreements cover territories, margins, and delivery duties. They have agreements with malls, and big retail chains for exclusive outlets which are covered here as well.
• Work Agreements: From factory food technologists to sales representatives in the field, explicit work agreements spell out responsibilities, confidentiality terms (to secure recipes and processes), and terms of association.
• Service Contracts: Associations with delivery behemoths such as SwiggyInstamart and Zomato, and with e-commerce players such as Amazon and Flipkart, are regulated by comprehensive service contracts including logistics, commission, and liability.
• The Shareholders’ Agreement (SHA): This is probably the most important contract after Shark Tank. The SHA formally commits the agreement to law with the five Sharks. It specifies their rights, profit allocation, governance, and exit strategies. It’s the quintessential rulebook for their investor-founder partnership.

Due Diligence

When they would have written that cheque for ₹1 crore, the Sharks and their lawyers would have done intensive due diligence. It is a check-up of a business in medical terms, and for an FMCG business, it’s exhaustive. A standard due diligence process in case of Skippi would involve:

• Verification of Corporate Structure: Verify that Kabra Global Products Pvt. Ltd. (CIN: U15400MH2016PTC288650) is structured and if it is registered correctly.
• IP Audit: Ensuring the “Skippi” trademarks were properly filed and provided strong protection. That was a priority.
• Regulatory Compliance: This is gigantic in the food sector. They would have checked the FSSAI license and made sure all the manufacturing units strictly complied with hygiene and labelling standards. Any single infraction can cause huge recalls and reputation loss.
• Contract Review: Reviewing the current agreements with suppliers and distributors to make sure they were equitable and would not create issues with expansion.
• Financial Health: Reviewing sales data, profit margins, and cash flow to confirm the staggering growth numbers outlined in the pitch.

This attentiveness was important because the Sharks were investing in a brand. Anything undone in the legal or regulatory underpinning could have dissolved their investment more quickly than an ice pop on a hot day.

Key Legal & Business Lessons

Other start-ups can learn a few things from Skippi’s journey:

• Early IP filing. Prior to Shark Tank airing, in March 2021, Skippi filed its trademarks. This one action guaranteed their brand ownership and stopped copycats from profiting.
• Possess written agreements. Handshake deals are insufficient for FMCG businesses. Clear, detailed agreements are necessary for distributors, suppliers, and employees. Credibility is increased by compliance. FSSAI compliance is essential to the survival of food start-ups; it is not an option. Skippi marketed itself as a brand that is clean, safe, and endorsed by parents.
• Investment is earned through due diligence. The Sharks invested in a business that had done its legal research, not just in nostalgia.
• Power is equal to nostalgia plus trust. Skippi established a niche by bringing back fond childhood memories while maintaining brand safety and hygiene.

Conclusion

Skippi Ice Pops proves that innovation doesn’t always mean inventing something new; it can mean bringing back something old in a smarter, safer, and more marketable way.

From unbranded street-side popsicles to an organised FMCG brand backed by five Sharks, Skippi shows how legal strategy and brand protection are just as important as product innovation. For entrepreneurs, the message is clear:

• Build nostalgia or emotion into your brand.
• Secure it with IP.
• Scale it with contracts and compliance.

Skippi’s story serves as a reminder that sometimes the most endearing ventures are based on early memories that are bolstered by investor confidence and legal protection.

Author Details-Apoorva Lamba(3rd Year Student, Madhav Mahavidyalya, Jiwaji University, Gwalior)