Ranjan Pai's Family Office, Two Others Buy FirstCry Stake From SoftBank
Pai's Manipal Education and Medical Group family office has bought about Rs 250 crore worth of stake.
Three prominent Indian family offices have bought into SoftBank Corp.'s stake in FirstCry, ahead of an upcoming initial public offering by the online kids' clothes retailer.
The family office of Manipal Group, led by Chairperson Ranjan Pai, Harsh Mariwala's Sharrp Ventures and the family office of DSP Investment Managers Chairman Hemendra Kothari have cumulatively purchased about Rs 435 crore worth of equity in FirstCry. Softbank Vision Fund sold a small percentage of its holding as a part of this transaction.
Pai's Manipal Education and Medical Group family office has bought about Rs 250 crore worth of stake, he told BQ Prime on Monday. Pai couldn't ascertain the exact stake purchased.
"The founders of FirstCry have created an excellent brand through their focus on execution. We are excited about the growth in the consumer sector in India and look forward to participate in the growth of this segment," Pai said.
He said while FirstCry is IPO-bound, the family office is looking at it as a long-term investment. Pai is also in talks to invest a substantial amount in beleaguered PharmEasy and Byju's-owned Aakash Educational Services Ltd.
"Our early investors have been instrumental in our success, and we are delighted to have helped deliver multi-fold return to our investors," FirstCry Chief Executive Officer Supam Maheshwari said. "I welcome our new investors who bring with them exceptional track record and knowledge of scaling large successful businesses in India, that will be highly valuable in our journey ahead."
"FirstCry has built a robust business capitalising a first-mover advantage to establish significant market leadership," Rishabh Mariwala, managing partner at Sharrp Ventures said. "Sharrp is very positive about the consumer theme playing out in India."
Pune-based FirstCry launched in 2010 and retails a wide range of products for babies, kids and mothers through online and physical stores. It has raised about $425 million till date and turned unicorn in 2020 when SoftBank invested around $300 million in FirstCry.
