TA Associates invests $140 million in owner of fashion brand ‘W’
US-based private equity firm TA associates acquires minority stake in TCNS Clothing that owns W, Aurelia and Wishful brands
Mumbai: US-based private equity firm TA Associates Management Lp has invested $140 million for a minority stake in TCNS Clothing Co. Pvt. Ltd, a leading women’s apparel platform that sells popular fashion brand ‘W’.
The New Delhi-based TCNS Clothing owns three brands—W, Aurelia and Wishful—that are present at more than 1,600 points of sale across India, Mauritius, Sri Lanka and the Middle East, and in over 300 exclusive stores in more than 100 cities. The three brands also have a strong presence across large multi-brand retailers and online portals, according to a TA Associates statement on Thursday.
Mint reported in June that TA Associates was in talks to acquire a minority stake in TCNS Clothing.
TA Associates plans to acquire a stake of about 30-35% in W, with existing investor Matrix Partners India selling its almost 20% stake and promoters 10-15% to raise fresh capital for funding expansion, the Mint report said.
Matrix has invested about ₹ 100 crore in TCNS Clothing since 2011.
“The women’s ethnic apparel market in India is largely unorganized and is undergoing a shift towards organized and branded. As the leader in branded women’s apparel, TCNS Clothing is driving this shift and providing the Indian consumer with a differentiated product and value proposition across its multiple apparel brands," said Naresh Patwari, director at TA Associates in Mumbai, who will join the TCNS board of directors.
The Indian women’s apparel market is predicted to reach approximately $20 billion in 2020, up from $13 billion in 2015, a compounded annual growth rate of 10%, according to Avendus Capital. The branded portion of this market, approximately 17% in 2015, is expected to surpass 38% over the next 10 years.
TCNS achieved consumer sales of more than $120 million in fiscal year 2016, resulting in 70% year-over-year growth. The company added almost 100 stores last year and made its international foray with exclusive stores in Sri Lanka and Mauritius, the statement said.
The women’s apparel market has invited the interest of several private equity investors in the last couple of years.
Aditya Birla Private Equity backed Creative Lifestyle Pvt. Ltd, owner of women’s apparel brands 109F, Fusion Beats and O2xygen, last September. Everstone Capital picked up a minority stake by investing ₹ 100 crore in fashion label Ritu Kumar in 2014.
General Atlantic bought a minority stake in AND Designs India Ltd, a designer and manufacturer of women’s apparel, for about ₹ 150 crore in November 2013. Private equity firms Warburg Pincus and Faering Capital also invested about ₹ 300 crore in Biba Apparels Pvt. Ltd, a firm that makes women’s ethnic wear, in 2013.
Founded in 1968, TA Associates has invested about $17 billion in 460 companies across the globe.
In India, it has invested in payment platform BillDesk, diagnostic chain Dr Lal PathLabs Ltd, mobile handset-maker Micromax Informatics Ltd and RateGain IT Solutions Pvt. Ltd, a price recommendation engine for hotels.
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