Blackstone eyes $500-$720 mn deals a year in India

MUMBAI: US private equity giant Blackstone Group expects to invest roughly $500 million to $720 million a year in India over the next few years, a top official said on Tuesday, as a subdued stock market drives entrepreneurs to other investors. Akhil Gupta, chairman and managing director of Blackstone India, told the Reuters India Investment Summit that private equity was in great demand to fund projects. "Not just ourselves, but the entire fraternity is extremely busy right now," he said. The firm expects to do five or six deals a year in India of roughly $100 million to $120 million each, he said. The main stock index has fallen more than a fifth this year as a slew of rate increases dented consumer spending and hurt earnings growth. Blackstone, which manages about $128 billion globally according to Thomson Reuters data, is one of the most active private equity investors in India, where it has invested nearly $1.8 billion since 2006. Gupta declined to comment on media reports that Blackstone was in talks along with rival Carlyle Group to buy the telecoms tower unit of debt-laden cellular carrier Reliance Communications. Regulatory uncertainty is an overhang on the sector, he said. "I can give you lots of scenarios where telecom may be a great buy, but it will depend on how the regulations unfold, and I have no certainty that regulations unfold the way it should unfold," Gupta said.

After working women, Tanishq to launch sub-brand for youth

MUMBAI: Tata Group's jewellery brand Tanishq, which has launched a sub-brand ,'Mia', for working women, is now targeting the youth. "After 'Mia', we are planning to introduce another sub-brand, comprising gold and diamond jewellery, especially for the youth. We may possibly launch it next year," Tanishq Vice-President, Retail, Marketing and Merchandise, Sandeep Kulhalli told PTI here. 'Mia' brand is meant for women on the go, who are engaged in various professions and have a well-established accessory ensemble, unfortunately excluding jewellery, he said. With over five million working women in the country, which will keep on increasing, this segment has a huge growth potential, Kulhalli stated. "This collection is high on design quotient, light in weight, affordable and apt for today's modern woman. Mia has over 100 designs priced at Rs 5,999 onwards and the collection is available across the 130 Tanishq outlets in over 76 towns." Talking about the overall revenue, he said the company is expecting about 30-40 per cent topline growth this fiscal year compared to FY11, on the back of retail expansions. "We are targeting to open about 10-15 stores every year, especially in the tier II and III cities, where the growth potential is huge, apart from strengthening the existing tier I spread," he added.

Footwear industry doubles to Rs 20,000 crore in 5 years as Indians go on a shopping spree

BANGALORE/KOLKATA: Madhu Malhotra could not believe her luck when she chanced upon a pink and white pair of heels that had an uncanny resemblance to her pinkembroidered white kurta at DB Mall in Bhopal last Thursday. The missionary school teacher also scooped up a pair of maroon flats that day to go with her jeans on weekends, increasing her shoe count to 35 pairs. "People have a tendency to buy only on Diwali, but I buy through the year," the 58-year-old giggles, having bought a pair of gladiator flats on a recent holiday to Mumbai. She is not an exception. Many Indian consumers now spend as much on footwear as on apparel and change their shoes for different occasions, helping expand footwear range from formals, casuals and home wear to weddings, monsoons, clubwear, sportswear, adventure, beachwear and lounge wear. They have also helped the footwear industry almost double in the past five years to an estimated Rs 20,000 crore and prompted retailers to widen their footprint with some urgency. Here is an industry where everybody is in a rush and nobody talks slowdown, which is being felt in most areas of the economy. Harkirat Singh, managing director of the Rs 600-crore Woodland, says the industry is not feeling any impact of slowdown due to a number of external triggers that include more women joining the workforce, an increasing desire to look good and rise in consumers' aspiration levels. "All these are pushing shoe retailing to newer heights," says Singh. Big retailers such as Bata, Liberty and Reliance Footprint are adding nearly two stores a week and opening large-format outlets in smaller cities. Footwear Shopping Has Increased : The country's largest shoe retailer Bata India's group MD Rajeev Gopalakrishnan says increasing competition is forcing the companies to refresh their collection at a faster rate than before. Industry insiders say the frequency of footwear shopping has increased dramatically. While men buy a pair of shoes every quarter, women do it faster, every two months. "With fast-changing fashion, customers prefer to update shoes and accessories whenever they update their wardrobe with new apparel," says Kabir Lumba, MD of department store chain Lifestyle International, which has reported 50% year-onyear growth in the footwear segment since 2008. While women may labour over design, colour and heel sizes ranging from ballerina flats to kitten heels, wedges and stilettos, men sweat over anti-skid, biodegradable and waterproof materials. And a lot of customers are now more concerned about the looks than comfort and durability, says Jacob John, brand head of apparel brand Louis Philippe, which entered the footwear market last year. Footwear accounts for 10% of Louis Philippe's revenues. The fashion brand owned by Madura Fashion & Lifestyle recently opened a pure play men's footwear store in Pune. Anupam Bansal, MD of Liberty Retail Revolutions, says Indians now spend 8-10% of their income on footwear and accessories.

Emami, Marico, Wipro eye Paras Pharma's Rs 100-crore personal care business from Reckitt Benckiser

KOLKATA/NEW DELHI: Indian consumer goods makers Emami, Marico and Wipro Consumer are in the final lap to acquire Paras Pharma's 100-crore personal care business from Reckitt Benckiser, three people close to the development said. The business-which includes Livon hair conditioner and hair tonic, Borosoft antiseptic cream, Set Wet hair styling products and Zatak deodorant-is likely to be valued at around 800-900 crore, they said on condition of anonymity. Emami Executive Chairman RS Agarwal confirmed the Kolkata-based company's interest. "We are looking at it very seriously," he said, adding that his company is undertaking the due diligence of Paras brands. Marico Chairman and MD Harsh Mariwala said, "We keep on looking at various targets and won't be able to comment on any specific one." A Wipro spokesperson too refused to comment. Two other original suitors, Dabur and Godrej Consumer Products, dropped out of the race due to high valuation. That too at a time when there is a slowdown in the overall economic activity. Dabur India Group Director PD Narang confirmed that his company is not participating in the bidding, the first stage of which concluded late last week. Morgan Stanley is managing the deal for Reckitt Benckiser. A spokeswoman said Reckitt Benckiser does not comment on speculations. The UK-based maker of Dettol antiseptic, Harpic toilet cleaner and Mortein mosquito repellant had bought Paras Pharmaceuticals for 3,260 crore last December in the one of the largest deals in the Indian FMCG space. After internal reviews, industry insiders say, it decided to focus on Paras' healthcare brands such as Moov pain reliever, D'Cold flu and cold drug, Dermicool prickly heat powder, Krack foot cream and Itch Guard and Ring Guard anti fungal creams, and sell off its personal care brands. Paras' health-care business is estimated at 300-350 crore. While Reckitt Benckiser is eyeing a valuation of 1,000 crore for Paras' personal care business, a senior official of one of the bidding companies said the deal is likely to be sealed at a lower price. "Except Livon, which is a market leader in the hair tonic segment, most of the other brands are performing average. The deal may be sealed at a lower price than what Reckitt Benckiser was initially expecting," the person said. The personal care product market in India is estimated at 30,000 crore, growing 18-20% a year, driven by rising incomes and aspirations, increasing awareness and widening reach of marketers make more and more people use personal care products ranging from shampoos and handwash to deodorants and hair gels. While there is a strong presence of multinationals led by market leader Hindustan Unilever and Procter & Gamble, Indian companies have been scouting for buyout opportunities to grow their business both within the country and elsewhere through niche products. In fact, Emami-which bought Zandu Pharmaceuticals three years ago for around 700 crore-gave a close fight to Reckitt Benckiser in the race for Paras Pharmaceuticals last year. This time Emami has roped in JP Morgan, which helped Reckitt clinch the Paras deal last year. That was the last big deal in the 1,30,000-crore Indian FMCG market where recent M&A talks have mostly failed due to differences in valuations at a time when rising costs, economic slowdown and intense competition are squeezing FMCG companies' margins.

Bajaj Electricals cosies up to shoppers to take on MNCs

KOLKATA: Shekhar Bajaj regularly accompanies his wife on her shopping trips to Big Bazaar and other shops to talk to consumers about their choice of products. "What could be a better way to get the consumer's voice?" says the 63-years old CMD of Bajaj Electricals, who organises open customer forums wherever he goes for dealer meets and has already met some 10,000 customers this year as he looks for ways to protect his firm's leadership in the 5,200-crore small appliances market. "If you are directly involved with them (consumers), it's an added advantage since the market is becoming hyper competitive," says Bajaj, first cousin of Bajaj Group chairman Rahul Bajaj. Dutch MNC Philips is literally breathing down his neck after it acquired Preethi, a leading kitchen appliances brand in the South, earlier this year. "Its one brand we have to be cautious about," says Bajaj, who plans to use a combination of Bajaj in the mass segment and Morphy Richards in the premium segment to take on Philips-Preethi. Japan's largest durable maker Panasonic too has become aggressive in India and home-grown brands such as Havells are venturing into this segment, making the 2,741-crore Bajaj Electricals to bet on consumer-driven innovation to protect its turf. "We want to protect our territory by strengthening and launching newer products, and be a brand which is close to consumers. It's like creating a strong wall to prevent the multinationals and new players from entering our turf," Bajaj told ET after a customer meet in Kolkata. Bajaj Electricals is setting up its first dedicated R&D centre near Mumbai and finalising fresh investment plans to help its revenues grow almost 10 fold to 20,000 crore by 2020, says Bajaj. Bajaj versus Philips The overall small appliances market is estimated at 5,200 crore, growing 15-18% a year. The premium segment grows around 30% a year. Main brands in the industry are Bajaj, Philips, Panasonic, Preethi, Morphy Richards, Usha and Maharaja Whiteline, besides scores of regional brands. Bajaj and Philips are neck and neck in the small appliances market comprising kitchen appliances such as food processor, juicer-mixer and toasters, and domestic appliances such as geyser, room heaters and coffeemakers. Philips India president (consumer lifestyle) Anjan Bose says the company is making aggressive, focused investments to expand its product portfolio and strengthen its distribution network. Bajaj says the combination of Bajaj and Morphy Richards - the UK-based brand with whom Bajaj Electricals has an exclusive sales and marketing partnerships in India - can tackle the Philips-Preethi threat. "We want to sandwich Philips-Preethi combine with these two brands," says Bajaj. "If I had launched a premium segment, users wouldn't accept it since people perceive Bajaj as a value-for-money brand. However, they are ready to pay a premium for a foreign brand like Morphy Richards with added features."

Adidas' $1 shoes to be sold under Reebok brand in India

NEW DELHI: Reebok International is working to develop a "sustainable business model" as part of its German parent Adidas AG's plans to sell "one dollar shoes" in India. After conducting a pilot test for 5,000 pairs of shoes of an existing design of Reebok in three villages in Bangladesh last year, the firm is now planning to apply the learnings in India in the next stage, which it has termed as 'Phase III'. "The focus of Phase III is the development of the actual product and the development of a sustainable business model to ensure the program's long-term success," Reebok International spokesperson Daniel Sarro told media. During this phase, Reebok will be testing the technical feasibility of producing a durable, functional and affordable shoes-based on learnings from the Bangladesh market. When asked if the shoes would be priced at one dollar as envisaged by Adidas CEO Herbert Hainer, Sarro said: "The price of the product is unknown at this time. However, the goal of the project remains - to create an affordable product that meets the needs of the consumer." Having failed to get the desired result in its similar attempt in Bangladesh, the company is ensuring that in India they are taking the right steps to overcome the challenges. "Based on the staffing challenges learned in the previous phase (in Bangladesh), phase III is being conducted in India, where Reebok has a central headquarters and a range of staff that can dedicate the time needed to develop the product and test the business model," he said. In 2008, Hainer began discussions with Bangladeshi economist and founder of the Grameen Bank, Muhammad Yunus for developing, marketing and distributing a low cost footwear in Bangladesh in the form of a social business. Following the initial exploratory project, the Reebok Brand, based on its corporate responsibility focus, created a plan to move forward with the next phase of the project. "In the fall of 2010, Reebok proceeded with the second phase of the project, a pilot test of 5,000 pairs of an existing Reebok shoe in three villages in Bangladesh," Sarro said. However, there were a number of challenges that became evident during this phase of the project such as the lack of a permanent Reebok office or staff in Bangladesh to help with product and business model development, as well as import costs and taxes, he said.

Punjab to issue 5,651 licences to wood-based industries

CHANDIGARH: The Punjab government today received approval from Central Empowered Committee (CEC) to issue licences to 5,651 wood-based industries units (WBIs) in the state giving a major boost agro-forestry in the state. While presiding over a high level departmental meeting Punjab Forest and Wild Life Preservation Minister Arunesh Shakir informed that these WBIs include 5,290 sawmills, 139 veneer mills, 203 plywood factories and 19 other units and the licenses would be issued to these units on the basis of one time payment. He said 360 WBIs established after 30 October 2002 were closed down in the state as per the orders of Supreme Court according to which "no state or Union Territory shall permit any unlicensed saw mill, veneer, plywood industry to operate an they are directed to close all such units forthwith. No state government or Union Territory will permit the opening of these units without the prior permission of the Central Empowered Committee. The Chief Secretary of the State will ensure strict compliance of this direction. Shakir said that with the concerted efforts of the Punjab government WBI once again would flourish in the state. He said at present 32 lakh cubic metre wood was available every year in the state and consumption of these WBI was 28 lakh cubic metre per year. For the consumption of surplus 4 lakh cubic metre wood approximately 200 new industrial units were to be set up which would also generate direct and indirect employment to thousands of youth in the state. Shakir said the government was working out the modalities of this project which could change the entire agricultural scenario of the state with large scale supply of cloned plants to the farmers in a sustained manner. The Minister further stated that the state government was also studying the possibilities to install Ply Factories at the behest of Punjab Forest Corporation with which more and more farmers could be motivated to plant trees like popular and eucalyptus. He said with the setting up of these factories, the Corporation would be in position to fix the MSP of agro forestry products which was long demand of the farmers of the state.

Cement price may go up by 1-2% in November: Crisil Research

NEW DELHI: The average price of cement, which stands at Rs 280 per bag of 50 kg, may go up by between Rs 3 and Rs 6 per bag in the current month on increased construction activity, according to report by Crisil Research. "Post the festive season, the construction activity and consequently cement demand will gain traction, which could lead prices to rise by 1-2 per cent, on a month-on-month basis, in November, 2011," Crisil Research Head Ajay D'Souza said. The average retail price of cement in the country rose by about six per cent month-on-month to Rs 280 per bag in October 2011. "Notable price hike in the Northern region in October, 2011, largely supported the pan-India price increase," he said, adding that on a yearly basis, the average pan-India retail cement price recorded an increase of almost 15 per cent during the month. D'Souza said the domestic consumption of cement in October remained almost flat resulting in just three per cent increase in demand during the April-October period of the current fiscal. "The subdued pace of construction activity in real estate and infrastructure segment is largely instrumental for this lacklustre demand," he said. India's total consumption of cement in October this year was 18.1 million tonnes, just 0.6 per cent up over the same month last year. It consumed 123 million tonnes cement during the April-October period of the current fiscal.

Ultratech Cement to invest Rs 11,000 crore to augment capacity to 62 mtpa

NEW DELHI: Ultratech Cement will invest Rs 11,000 crore to jack up its production capacity by 10 million tonnes per annum (mtpa) to 62 mtpa by the first quarter of 2013-14 fiscal. "The company has a capital outlay of Rs 11,000 crore to be spent over the next three years ... Orders have been placed for major equipment. These expansions are expected to be operational by Q1 FY14," the company has said in a letter to the shareholders. The company will use the proposed fund on clinkerisation plants through brownfield expansions at Chhattisgarh and Karnataka, installing waste-heat recovery systems, instituting bulk packaging terminal and setting up of ready-mix concerete plants. "Upon completion of this round of capex, company's Cement capacity will stand augmented by 10 mtpa to 62 mtpa, captive power from 504 MW to 674 MW and generation of green power through waste recovery from 4 MW to 65 MW," Ultratech said. The capacity expansion was being funded through a mix of internal accruals and borrowings, it said, adding that it has spent over Rs 1,100 crore on various capex initiatives so far during the first half of the current fiscal. Meanwhile, the company said the current surplus scenario in the domestic market was likely to continue for the next 2-3 years, but the growing input costs would squeeze margins. "Over the long-term, the sector is likely to grow over 8 per cent on the back of government's focus on infrastructure development and housing. Further, the enhanced capital allocation towrads infrastructure in the 12th Five Year Plan will give the desirde push to the sector," it said.

India Cements earns its highest EBITDA from Chennai Super Kings

CHENNAI: India Cements has earned its highest-ever EBITDA from IPL franchise Chennai Super Kings (of Rs 32.8 crore) in Q2, according to brokerage firm Motilal Oswal. This has come on the back of IPL revenues of Rs 51.5 crore. In the first quarter, IPL fetched India Cements more revenues - Rs 84.8 crore. However, EBITDA was only Rs 6.6 crore. The Q2 EBITDA from IPL was more than double of what Motilal Oswal had forecast (about Rs 15 crore). The operating performance of India Cements got a boost from this and the company's total EBITDA was at Rs 252 crore on revenues of Rs 1,092 crore in the second quarter. The company posted a Q2 net profit of nearly Rs 70 crore, from a loss of over Rs 33 crore this quarter last year, amid capacity overhand and sluggish demand in its bread-and-butter South market. But net profit was lower than the Q1 figure of Rs 102 crore. In the first half, IPL revenues were Rs 138 crore, about 6% of total revenue.