More Retail plans Rs 2,000-cr IPO in 2026 to aid expansion, reduce debt

Kolkata, May 12 (PTI) Amazon and Samara Capital-backed supermarket chain More Retail is planning to raise around Rs 2,000 crore through an initial public offer (IPO), which is expected to hit the market in the calendar year 2026, a top company official said on Monday.

The proposed fund-raise plan will be mostly through fresh capital infusion, with no significant offer-for-sale component, as promoters, Samara Capital and Amazon, who hold 51 per cent and 48 per cent stake respectively, are unlikely to offload their shares, he said, adding that the remaining stake is held by family offices.

"We are looking at an IPO in 12–18 months, depending on valuation and market conditions. We hope to raise Rs 2,000 crore, and the current promoter dilution could be about 10 per cent," More Retail Managing Director Vinod Nambiar said.

He said the funds will be used primarily to expand the store count to 3,000 by 2030 and to make the company nearly debt-free.

The current debt stands at about Rs 500 crore, consisting of loans and non-convertible debentures (NCDs), the company official said.

Both promoters have a long-term commitment to the business and pumped in Rs 900 crore over the past five years in addition to the acquisition cost of Rs 4,300 crore.

"More Retail raised Rs 150 crore in the last 120 days from family offices to benchmark valuation," Nambiar said.

The retail chain, which is expanding aggressively, is set to cross 1,100 stores soon and aims to become EBITDA-positive with Rs 60 crore profit in FY'26, he said.

The company reported a Rs 65 crore EBITDA loss in FY'24, as per Ind AS accounting standards.

"It will take two years to achieve PAT-level profitability," he added.

The retailer is also deepening its partnership with Amazon Fresh. Currently, 270 of its stores serve Amazon Fresh, and this number is expected to rise to 370 by July, and further to 500–600 stores by the end of the current fiscal year, Nambiar said.

The company’s offline and hybrid store count is projected to exceed 1,100 by FY'26, while the number of 'dark' outlets will also grow from the existing 40 to 100 by then.

'Dark' stores only cater to online orders.

Most of the expansion will take place in smaller towns, and during the current fiscal, Jharkhand and Odisha will be added to its footprint, Nambiar said.

More Retail currently has a strong presence in South India, West Bengal, Punjab, Haryana, and the NCR, having exited from Delhi city and Mumbai.

Meanwhile, Nambair said West Bengal is a key market and the company is the largest in West Bengal in terms of the number of stores.

The company has 109 stores in Bengal and will add 90 outlets in the next two years. PTI BSM BDC

Source: PTI