Premji Invest, the family office of Wipro Head Ajim Premji is eyeing to invest $250 million in the holding company of Kishore Biyani’s Future Group. According to a report published in leading daily, Premji invest can pick up 6 percent stake sale in Future Retail at a time when the market is already buzzing discussions over Amazon to pick up a 10% stake in brick and mortar retailer.
Kishore Biyani’s move to shore up funds has come at a time when US giant Walmart has taken a huge bet on India by investing $16 billion in homegrown e-commerce startup Flipkart valued at $21 billion.
It is crucial to note that PremjiInvest had earlier bought 8 per cent stake the group’s branded apparel chain in Future Lifestyle Fashions, however, it had half of its stake to private equity fund L Catterton Asia.
Meanwhile, another source concerned with the matter said that Amazon too is about to pick up a 10% stake in Future Group, a move to tap’s retail firms grocery business through its Bigbazaar and Easyday stores. “Amazon wants to mimic the Whole Food model in the US and leverage Big Bazaar’s scale and sourcing”, said a source.
Future Retail is the group’s retail arm while Future Consumers is FMCG vertical, the parent entity of the group is called Future Corporate brands. The retail group operates 2,500 stores across various formats and brands like Big Bazaar, Easyday, Brand Factory and HyperCity, among others.