Reliance Buying Stake in Few Future Group's Units to Strengthen Its E-Commerce Plans

In a move that would strengthen the e-commerce strategies of Reliance Industries, the Mukesh Ambani-led conglomerate is about to conclude on a deal that would see it acquire stakes in some of the units of Future Group, said several media outlets via Bloomberg reported, citing people privy with the matter.

According to the report, an agreement between Reliance and Future Group, could be announced by next month. The on-going negotiation includes Future Retail as well as other retail units of Future Group.

Reliance is offering to buy into the Future group's holding company, in which family of Kishore Biyani, founder and chief executive officer of Future Group, holds stakes in. Since March, family of Kishore Biyani, founder and chief executive officer of Future Group, had been negotiating with creditors to sell shares in several group companies, people familiar with the matter told Bloomberg News in March.

The report further said that, the Future Group was in talks with PremjiInvest and Samara Capital for stake sale in Future Retail. The talks involving Future Group are part of the intensifying war to win over the Indian shopper -- both online and in physical stores.

If any deal is materialized, then it would be a breather for the Future Group as in March Biyani had defaulted on loans. Various rating agencies like Standard & Poor's and Fitch downgraded credit ratings of Future Retail after the default and invocation of pledged shares by lenders. The Promoter & Promoter Group held 40.31 per cent stake in Future Retail as of March 31, 2020.

The holding firm, through which Biyani's family owns its stake in the units, owes money to the lenders including Apollo Global Management Inc., Blackstone Group Inc. and UBS Group AG. The listed entities have debt of about 100 billion rupees ($1.3 billion), while the amount is similar for the holding vehicles of the family, the people said.

Future Retail operates 1,500 retail stores that cover over 16 million square feet of retail space in 400 cities. It has large format stores, Big Bazaar, its flagship chain, besides small store neighbourhood retail chains, EasyDay Club and Heritage Fresh.

Future Group's 'Sabse Saste Din' Sale to be Live on Amazon Too

Kishore Biyani-led Future Group's 'Sabse Saste Din' sale starting from January 26 would go live on e-commerce major Amazon's web store as well, according to sources.

This would be the first time when Amazon would host Future Group's sale. Earlier last year, Amazon had announced acquiring 49 per cent stake in Future Coupons, which owns 7.3 per cent shares of Future Retail, with an option to buy the entire holding at a later stage.

"As Future Group has entered into a tie up with Amazon, its 'Sabse Saste Din' sale would also go live on Amazon (e-commerce portal)," a source said.

Future Group would conduct the sale through its various stores, including Big Bazaar retail outlets. The company's 'Sabse Saste Din' sales are held around Republic Day and Independence Day holidays.

The sale, lasting five-six days, contributes substantially to Future Group's annual retail turnover.

Besides, the group also organises two small 'Sabse Saste Din' sales on May 1 and October 2 (Gandhi Jayanti). When contacted, Future Group declined to comment.

In August last year, Amazon had said it would acquire 49 per cent stake in Future Retail promoter firm Future Coupons Ltd for an undisclosed amount.

Future Retail Ltd operates popular supermarket and hypermarket chains such as Big Bazaar and WHSmith. PTI KRH

Amazon to Buy 49% Stake in Future Retail Promoter Firm

New Delhi, Aug 23 (PTI) US-based commerce major Amazon would acquire 49 per cent stake in a Future Retail promoter firm, Future Coupons Ltd, for an undisclosed amount.

The promoter group of Future Group led by Kishore Biyani has entered into a share subscription agreement and a shareholders' agreement with Amazon.Com NV Investment Holdings LLC (Amazon).

Future Coupons holds about 7.3 per cent stake in Future Retail Ltd, which operates popular supermarket and hypermarket chains such as Big Bazaar and WHSmith, through convertible warrants.

The investment would help Future Retail to launch new products and digital payment solutions, a Future Group spokesperson said.

"This investment reflects our commitment to innovate for Indian customers and offer best-in-class shopping experience. This investment provides an opportunity for us to learn global trends in digital payments solutions and launch new products," the spokesperson said.

Future Retail in a filing to BSE said that Amazon has agreed to make an equity investment in Future Coupons Limited for acquiring a 49 per cent stake comprising both, voting and non-voting shares.

As part of the agreement, Amazon has been granted a call option, which allows the US commerce major to "acquire all or part of the promoters' shareholding in Future Retail and is exercisable between the 3rd to 10th years, in certain circumstances, subject to applicable law.”

This is the third investment of the Seattle-based e-commerce major in the Indian brick & mortar retail space and will help Amazon further strengthen its foothold here where it already operates an online marketplace.

Amazon already has stake in retail chains — K Raheja Corp Group's Shoppers Stop and Aditya Birla Retail's More.

In 2017, retail major Shoppers Stop had announced raising Rs 179.26 crore from Amazon.com Investment Holdings LLC through an issue of equity shares, which translated to just over 5 per cent shareholding for the American company.

In September last year, Amazon said it has co-invested in Witzig Advisory Services, the entity which had acquired Aditya Birla Retail's 'More' chain of stores in India. PTI KRH

MR

CFO of Future Enterprises Arrested for alleged Evasion of ₹ 14.58 crore in Customs Duty

The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) has arrested Dinesh Maheshwari, the chief financial officer (CFO) of Future Enterprises Ltd, for alleged evasion of customs duty to the tune of Rs 14.58 crore.

Future Enterprise, which develops, owns and leases the retail infrastructure for Kishore Biyani-controlled Future Group was importing readymade garments from Bangladesh through Petrapole Land Customs Station (LCS) without payment of basic customs duty, availing of the South Asian Free Trade Area (SAFTA) benefit, the agency said in a statement on Saturday.

"... He (Maheshwari) appears to be the main person responsible for the evasion of duty to the tune of Rs 14.58 crore by Future Enterprises Ltd. He appears to be guilty of an offence punishable under Section 135 of the Customs Act and has, therefore, been arrested under Section 104 of the Customs Act, on July 12," it said.

Investigations further revealed that the garments were supplied by third country suppliers based in Dubai and Singapore, but were delivered from Bangladesh after minimal processing, the DRI statement added.

To recall, in last month Commissionerate of Vadodara, Gujarat has unearthed a ₹ 40 crore (~ US$5.75 Mn ) goods and services tax (GST) scam in Vadodara, Gujarat-based Manpasand Beverages Ltd (MBL), which is backed by private equity firm SAIF Partners, which hold 25% stake in the company.

Amazon May Buy 7-8% Stake in Future Retail for $338 Million

US-based e-commerce giant Amazon Inc is likely to buy an at least 7-8% stake in India's Future Retail Ltd through an investment arm, reported CNBC-TV 18, citing sources privy to the development. With this, Amazon aims to strengthen its presence in the physical space and also to take on Walmart, said the report.

The potential cash-and-stock deal, which is in its final stages, could be worth $338 million or ₹2500 crores and is likely to be signed in the next two weeks.

Earlier in May this year, media reports suggested that Amazon was in talks to buy a 10 percent stake in Future Retail, competing with tech giant Google and Alibaba-backed Paytm. Future Retail had denied the reports.

The potential deal will be next in a series of acquisitions by Amazon.com Inc in one of the fastest-growing markets in the face of competition from Walmart Inc's Flipkart.

In September, Amazon, along with private equity firm Samara Capital, bought Aditya Birla Group-owned 'More' retail chain for an enterprise value of 42 billion rupees ($568.03 million).

Amazon May Buy 7-8% Stake in Future Retail for $338 Million

US-based e-commerce giant Amazon Inc is likely to buy an at least 7-8% stake in India's Future Retail Ltd through an investment arm, reported CNBC-TV 18, citing sources privy to the development. With this, Amazon aims to strengthen its presence in the physical space and also to take on Walmart, said the report.

The potential cash-and-stock deal, which is in its final stages, could be worth $338 million or ₹2500 crores and is likely to be signed in the next two weeks.

Earlier in May this year, media reports suggested that Amazon was in talks to buy a 10 percent stake in Future Retail, competing with tech giant Google and Alibaba-backed Paytm. Future Retail had denied the reports.

The potential deal will be next in a series of acquisitions by Amazon.com Inc in one of the fastest-growing markets in the face of competition from Walmart Inc's Flipkart.

In September, Amazon, along with private equity firm Samara Capital, bought Aditya Birla Group-owned 'More' retail chain for an enterprise value of 42 billion rupees ($568.03 million).

Amazon May Buy 10% Stake in India's Future Retail That Owns 'Big Bazaar'

After losing Flipkart to Walmart, US-based e-commerce giant Amazon is reportedly in talks with India’s largest brick-and-mortar retail company Future Retail, to acquire a stake.

Future Retail, which is the retail arm of Kishore Biyani-led retail & FMCG giant Future Group, owns physical retail stores such as Big Bazaar and Easy Day.

This development was first reported by FactorDaily, which said, quoting sources, that Amazon is looking to pump in roughly $600 million for a 10% stake in the company.

Quoting a second source, the report further said that the possible deal values Kishore Biyani owned Future Retail at about $6 billion (Rs. 40,872 crore). Amazon might end up spending about $500-600 million to acquire the stake in Future Retail -- which has a market cap of $4 billion and is listed on the bourses.

According to an another daily news website, Kishore Biyani and Jeff Bezos had a one-to-one meeting earlier this year to explore a possible deal.

Biyani visited Seattle around January or February to meet with Jeff Bezos, post which executives from Seattle came down to Mumbai to meet with Kishore Biyani and his team. However, discussions had been put on hold after that.

Reportedly, both -- Amazon and Future Retail-- wanted to wait for the Walmart-Flipkart deal to be over and then make the announcement of possible Amazon-Future Group deal thereafter, and then take things forward.

Future Retail is a listed company with a market cap of over Rs 26,000 crore and has over 900 stores across the country. Kishore Biyani, who has largely been known to criticize e-commerce players, has also made some unsuccessful attempts earlier at e-commerce with Future Bazaar, Big bazaar Direct and the acquisition of FabFurish, all of which were eventually shut down.

Post Walmart-Flipkart deal, the grocery market in India is expected to heat up in the coming months with BigBasket, Grofers, Flipkart, Amazon, Paytm Mall and Future Group lift up their strategies to capture the market.

As a matter of fact, Future Group is currently testing an app for online delivery groceries for EasyDay members through a subscription service on the lines of Amazon Prime. Interestingly, another Indian FMCG player -- Adani Wilmar, the company that markets ‘Fortune’ brand of food products in India, is also planning to enter the online grocery sales business with a new e-commerce portal and app called ‘Fortune Online’.

For Amazon, a deal with Biyani-led Future Retail will help the US giant to expand its capabilities in the same omni-channel category. Amazon, through its Amazon Direct and Amazon Fresh services has been looking at entering the grocery segment in India. A deal with Future Retail will also help it have an offline presence and give it access to the large customer base of Future Group.

In the past, Amazon has invested in brick-and-mortar retail companies. In September 2017, it had bought a 5% stake in Shoppers Stop for Rs 175 crore, which was earlier acquired by Future Group for Rs 655 crore, in 2016.

Earlier this year, Future Group has acquired Snapdeal's logistics arm Vulcan Express, for Rs 35 crores.

Amazon May Buy 10% Stake in India's Future Retail That Owns 'Big Bazaar'

After losing Flipkart to Walmart, US-based e-commerce giant Amazon is reportedly in talks with India’s largest brick-and-mortar retail company Future Retail, to acquire a stake.

Future Retail, which is the retail arm of Kishore Biyani-led retail & FMCG giant Future Group, owns physical retail stores such as Big Bazaar and Easy Day.

This development was first reported by FactorDaily, which said, quoting sources, that Amazon is looking to pump in roughly $600 million for a 10% stake in the company.

Quoting a second source, the report further said that the possible deal values Kishore Biyani owned Future Retail at about $6 billion (Rs. 40,872 crore). Amazon might end up spending about $500-600 million to acquire the stake in Future Retail -- which has a market cap of $4 billion and is listed on the bourses.

According to an another daily news website, Kishore Biyani and Jeff Bezos had a one-to-one meeting earlier this year to explore a possible deal.

Biyani visited Seattle around January or February to meet with Jeff Bezos, post which executives from Seattle came down to Mumbai to meet with Kishore Biyani and his team. However, discussions had been put on hold after that.

Reportedly, both -- Amazon and Future Retail-- wanted to wait for the Walmart-Flipkart deal to be over and then make the announcement of possible Amazon-Future Group deal thereafter, and then take things forward.

Future Retail is a listed company with a market cap of over Rs 26,000 crore and has over 900 stores across the country. Kishore Biyani, who has largely been known to criticize e-commerce players, has also made some unsuccessful attempts earlier at e-commerce with Future Bazaar, Big bazaar Direct and the acquisition of FabFurish, all of which were eventually shut down.

Post Walmart-Flipkart deal, the grocery market in India is expected to heat up in the coming months with BigBasket, Grofers, Flipkart, Amazon, Paytm Mall and Future Group lift up their strategies to capture the market.

As a matter of fact, Future Group is currently testing an app for online delivery groceries for EasyDay members through a subscription service on the lines of Amazon Prime. Interestingly, another Indian FMCG player -- Adani Wilmar, the company that markets ‘Fortune’ brand of food products in India, is also planning to enter the online grocery sales business with a new e-commerce portal and app called ‘Fortune Online’.

For Amazon, a deal with Biyani-led Future Retail will help the US giant to expand its capabilities in the same omni-channel category. Amazon, through its Amazon Direct and Amazon Fresh services has been looking at entering the grocery segment in India. A deal with Future Retail will also help it have an offline presence and give it access to the large customer base of Future Group.

In the past, Amazon has invested in brick-and-mortar retail companies. In September 2017, it had bought a 5% stake in Shoppers Stop for Rs 175 crore, which was earlier acquired by Future Group for Rs 655 crore, in 2016.

Earlier this year, Future Group has acquired Snapdeal's logistics arm Vulcan Express, for Rs 35 crores.

Future Group Acquires Snapdeal's Logistics Arm For ₹35 Crore

Kishore Biyani's Future Group's Supply Chain Solutions today said it will fully acquire Snapdeal's logistics service provider Vulcan Express Pvt Ltd in an all-cash deal valued at Rs 35 crore, reported Business Line.

With this acquisition, Future Group plans to boost its last mile capabilities and also offer modern solutions to its e-commerce and retail clients.

The acquisition deal happened in less than a month after Snapdeal infused fresh funds of ₹27 crore into Vulcan Express. Earlier in this month only, we reported about the possibilities of this acquisition.

Snapdeal Chief Strategy and Investment Officer Jason Kothari said, "Similar to our recent sale of FreeCharge, we believe Snapdeal's sale of Vulcan Express to Future Group is a successful deal for all three parties."

"Company divests off an asset that is non-strategic in nature for Snapdeal 2.0, allowing it to focus its capital and management on its core e-commerce business; Future Group gains high-quality pan-India end-to-end e-commerce logistics capabilities, and Vulcan secures a great new home for its business, including its team.", added Kothari in an official statement.

In an internal mail to employees, Vulcan Express CEO Hardeep Singh said, "This association is being recognised to be one of the most significant developments in the logistics industry in India... Vulcan's capabilities will be of big value to Future Supply Chain in enhancing its footprint and services".

Earlier in July 2017, it was reported that for sale of Vulcan Express Snapdeal was in talks with a few contenders including Gati, the express distribution and supply chain company, considered one of the largest in the country, and TVS Logistics. But it did not materialise into a firm deal.

Formed in 2014, Vulcan Express used to manage about half of Snapdeal's deliveries and shipments, replacing gojavas as the primary logistics partner, when about three years ago Snapdeal abandoned its plan to acquire Gojavas.

Future Group has been on an acquisition spree in the recent past. In April 2016, Future Group had also acquired Fabfurnish, an online furniture retailer, in an all-cash deal, followed by acquisition of Shoppers' Stop for Rs 655 crore.

Future Group Acquires Snapdeal's Logistics Arm For ₹35 Crore

Kishore Biyani's Future Group's Supply Chain Solutions today said it will fully acquire Snapdeal's logistics service provider Vulcan Express Pvt Ltd in an all-cash deal valued at Rs 35 crore, reported Business Line.

With this acquisition, Future Group plans to boost its last mile capabilities and also offer modern solutions to its e-commerce and retail clients.

The acquisition deal happened in less than a month after Snapdeal infused fresh funds of ₹27 crore into Vulcan Express. Earlier in this month only, we reported about the possibilities of this acquisition.

Snapdeal Chief Strategy and Investment Officer Jason Kothari said, "Similar to our recent sale of FreeCharge, we believe Snapdeal's sale of Vulcan Express to Future Group is a successful deal for all three parties."

"Company divests off an asset that is non-strategic in nature for Snapdeal 2.0, allowing it to focus its capital and management on its core e-commerce business; Future Group gains high-quality pan-India end-to-end e-commerce logistics capabilities, and Vulcan secures a great new home for its business, including its team.", added Kothari in an official statement.

In an internal mail to employees, Vulcan Express CEO Hardeep Singh said, "This association is being recognised to be one of the most significant developments in the logistics industry in India... Vulcan's capabilities will be of big value to Future Supply Chain in enhancing its footprint and services".

Earlier in July 2017, it was reported that for sale of Vulcan Express Snapdeal was in talks with a few contenders including Gati, the express distribution and supply chain company, considered one of the largest in the country, and TVS Logistics. But it did not materialise into a firm deal.

Formed in 2014, Vulcan Express used to manage about half of Snapdeal's deliveries and shipments, replacing gojavas as the primary logistics partner, when about three years ago Snapdeal abandoned its plan to acquire Gojavas.

Future Group has been on an acquisition spree in the recent past. In April 2016, Future Group had also acquired Fabfurnish, an online furniture retailer, in an all-cash deal, followed by acquisition of Shoppers' Stop for Rs 655 crore.

Future Group May Buy Snapdeal's Logistics Arm For ₹50 Crore

Within a week after Snapdeal infused fresh funds of ₹27 crore into Vulcan Express, its logistics arm, here comes the news that Future Group, India's larest retailer is in talks to buy Vulcan for about ₹50 crore in an all-cash deal.

Earlier in July 2017, it was reported that for sale of Vulcan Express Snapdeal was in talks with a few contenders including Gati, the express distribution and supply chain company, considered one of the largest in the country, and TVS Logistics. But it did not materialise into a firm deal.

With Vulcan purchase, Future Group wants to boost its strategy of integrating the retail company's digital and brick-and mortar retail businesses.

Formed in 2014, Vulcan Express manages about half of Snapdeal's deliveries and shipments, replacing gojavas as the primary logistics partner, when about three years ago Snapdeal abandoned its plan to acquire Gojavas.

Elaborating the purchase deal, the ET report said, "It will be a distress sale and the final valuation could be less than Rs 50 crore. The contours of the deal, including the size and through which company it will be done, are still being worked out."

It is also said that even if Snapdeal sell out Vulcan to whom so ever, the logistics company will continue to be the shipping and delivery partner of e-commerce firm.

Kishore Biyani-owned Future Supply Chain, on other hand, has raised Rs 650 crore by listing on the stock exchanges, a couple of weeks ago. The decade-old company caters to clients across consumer, food and beverages, ecommerce and electronics and gets about 63% of its revenue from group entities. At present, Future Group's technology integration, internally called Retail 3.0, is being piloted by making several Easyday stores a marketplace, giving consumers access to the company's entire inventory through the digital medium.

In April 2016, Future Group had also acquired Fabfurnish, an online furniture retailer, in an all-cash deal. The company however failing to run the purchased business and now its been reported that Kishore Biyani will shut down the Fabfurnish business.

Paytm Partners With Future Group to Deliver the Lowest Unit Cost Economics in the Industry

Paytm, Indian mobile payment and commerce platform, has entered into a strategic tie-up with Future Group, India’s leading retail company. The partnership will enable users to shop for Big Bazaar merchandise on Paytm marketplace and get delivery at their homes. In addition, users will also be able to avail promotional offers by Paytm while using their Paytm Wallet to make purchases at Future Group outlets such as Big Bazaar, EasyDay etc.

Vijay Shekhar Sharma, Founder & CEO, Paytm, said, "I am delighted that we now have India's retail Tsar Mr Biyani and the Future Group partnering with Paytm. Together, we see a fantastic opportunity to create an integrated mobile first, omni channel retail and payment solution for our wide consumer base. This partnership will allow consumers to shop easily for Big Bazaar merchandise on Paytm, and have the added convenience of home delivery. In addition, consumers can also pay through their Paytm Wallet while shopping at any Future Group retail outlet. I am sure that consumers will love this!"

Kishore Biyani, Group CEO, Future Group said, “I believe this strategic partnership will be a game-changer for the industry. On an end-to end basis, between Future Group and Patym, we will have the lowest unit cost economics in the Industry and this will be our key differentiator to create sustainable customer value. The Strengths of both the companies in large scale customer acquisition and seamless payments through Digital Wallets will be key ingredients in driving this partnership.”

Future Group operates a range of popular retail stores such as Big Bazaar, fbb, Foodhall, Central, Brand Factory, Ezone and EasyDay. Paytm’s tie-up with Future Group will also make Big Bazaar the anchor store on the Paytm marketplace, allowing Paytm users to make purchases at Big Bazaar from the comfort of their homes.

Future Group is the pioneer in the Indian retail sector and focuses on developing and operating modern retail networks, consumer goods brands and logistics networks for the consumption sector in India.

Future Group believes in developing strong insights on Indian consumers and building businesses based on Indian ideas, as espoused in the group’s core value of ‘Indianness’. The group’s corporate credo is, ‘Rewrite rules, Retail values’.

Future Group operates through its three listed entities –Future Retail Limited, Future Lifestyle Fashions Limited and Future Consumer Enterprises Limited.

Collectively, Future Group operates around 18.5 million square feet of retail space in over 240 cities and towns across India and provides direct employment to over 40,000 people. Around 30 million Indians are part of Future Group's loyalty networks.

Kishore Biyani Led Future Group To Buy FabFurnish.com in An All-Cash Deal

The Kishore Biyani-led Future Group is reportedly buying online furniture store Rocket Internet backed FabFurnish.com for an undisclosed amount. The deal amount is expected to vary between Rs.15 crore and Rs.20 crore in cash.

Future Group owns a home and furnishing business under the brand HomeTown which is present in 20 cities. Post acquisition, FabFurnish’s management team including 100 odd employees are likely to join Future Group. According to Biyani, HomeTown is expected to become a Rs.800 crore-1,000 crore business by the end of current financial year for Future Group.

Once deal closed, it will mark Berlin-based Rocket Internet’s first exit in India which also backs Foodpanda and Jabong.

FabFurnish faced tough competition from companies like Pepperfry and Urban Ladder that are backed by investors such as Goldman Sachs and Sequoia Capital. In July 2015, FabFurnish’s founders Mehul Agrawal and Vikram Chopra quit the company to start their own venture and the company appointed senior directors Ashish Garg and Ankita Dabas to take over management functions.

Gurgaon-based FabFurnish was founded in 2012 by Chopra, Agrawal and Vaibhav Aggarwal, it has raised over $30 million from Rocket Internet and Kinnevik so far.

Kishore Biyani Led Future Group To Buy FabFurnish.com in An All-Cash Deal

The Kishore Biyani-led Future Group is reportedly buying online furniture store Rocket Internet backed FabFurnish.com for an undisclosed amount. The deal amount is expected to vary between Rs.15 crore and Rs.20 crore in cash.

Future Group owns a home and furnishing business under the brand HomeTown which is present in 20 cities. Post acquisition, FabFurnish’s management team including 100 odd employees are likely to join Future Group. According to Biyani, HomeTown is expected to become a Rs.800 crore-1,000 crore business by the end of current financial year for Future Group.

Once deal closed, it will mark Berlin-based Rocket Internet’s first exit in India which also backs Foodpanda and Jabong.

FabFurnish faced tough competition from companies like Pepperfry and Urban Ladder that are backed by investors such as Goldman Sachs and Sequoia Capital. In July 2015, FabFurnish’s founders Mehul Agrawal and Vikram Chopra quit the company to start their own venture and the company appointed senior directors Ashish Garg and Ankita Dabas to take over management functions.

Gurgaon-based FabFurnish was founded in 2012 by Chopra, Agrawal and Vaibhav Aggarwal, it has raised over $30 million from Rocket Internet and Kinnevik so far.