Leading Indian fashion & apparel company, Aditya Birla Fashion & Retail Limited (ABFRL) has completed the acquisition of a 51 per cent stake in TCNS Clothing to become a promoter.
“The company has acquired 51 per cent of the expanded share capital of TCNS, thereby acquiring control over TCNS,” ABFRL said in a late night regulatory filing on Tuesday. TCNS has become a subsidiary of the company, and will also be a material subsidiary of the company in accordance with SEBI Listing Regulations, it added.
The value of the promoter stake and open offer consideration for TCNS was Rs 1650 crore for 51% stake, making this one of the largest deals in the Indian fashion space.
Over the last 5 years, ABFRL has built its ethnic portfolio through a series of strategic and calibrated actions. With this acquisition ABFRL’s ethnic wear portfolio is expected to reach Rs 5000 crore in the next 3 years.
The Timeline of the Deal
ABFRL had announced in May that it has entered into definitive agreements to acquire TCNS Clothing, the owner of leading ethnic brands W, Aurelia, Wishful, Folksong and Elleven.
This transaction was slated be carried out through:
> Acquisition of the founding promoter’s stake through a SPA and a conditional public open offer followed by
> Merger between the two entities.
Speaking on the transaction, Kumar Mangalam Birla, Chairman, Aditya Birla Group, had said, “This deal is yet another marker of the Aditya Birla Group’s faith in the dynamism and buoyancy of the Indian consumer economy. As India stands on the cusp of a multi-decadal consumption boom, ABFRL is a forerunner in shaping the fashion landscape of our vibrant nation. For ABFRL, the TCNS deal is indeed a significant milestone as it complements our existing portfolio of exceptional brands across the entire spectrum of Indian fashion. By embracing TCNS’s portfolio of loved women’s ethnic brands, we are reinforcing our commitment to ethnic wear, the largest category in the apparel industry. With this acquisition, the fast-growing ABFRL platform is poised for the next phase of transformational growth.”
Ashish Dikshit, Managing Director, ABFRL, added, “As young Indians identify a new-found confidence in their identities woven around Indian culture and heritage, the next set of leading consumer brands will be built in the Indian ethnic wear space. TCNS, through its brands W, Aurelia, Wishful, Folksong & Elleven, is catering to the Indian women’s fashion needs across markets and price points. Each of these brands have been built over a long period of time and enjoy tremendous consumer love. This transaction is a pivotal piece of our strategy of building India’s most comprehensive ethnic wear portfolio.”
ABFRL currently has a network of 3,468 stores across approximately 28,585 multi-brand outlets with 6,515 point of sales in department stores across India (as on 31st March 2022).
It has a repertoire of India’s largest brands in Louis Philippe, Van Heusen, Allen Solly and Peter England, established over 25 years. Pantaloons is one of India’s leading fashion retailers.
The company’s international Brands portfolio includes – The Collective, India’s largest multi-brand retailer of international brands and has long term exclusive partnerships with select brands such as Ralph Lauren, Hackett London, Ted Baker, Fred Perry, Forever 21, American Eagle and Reebok.
The Company’s foray into branded ethnic wear business includes brands such as Jaypore, Tasva & Marigold Lane. The company has strategic partnerships with Designers ‘Shantanu & Nikhil’, ‘Tarun Tahiliani’, ‘Sabyasachi’ and ‘House of Masaba’.
