Offline apparel value retailer V2 Retail has raised Rs 760 million from Lighthouse. The investment will be used to accelerate V2 Retail’s store expansion plans, the company said in a statement.
Delhi-based V2 Retail is a one-stop apparel store catering to the aspirational, but value-focused retail consumer, who otherwise had to resort to smaller, unorganised outlets for his or her apparel needs. For FY17, the company achieved revenue of approximately Rs 4.7 billion, representing a CAGR of over 60% over the last five years. Currently, V2 Retail has 44 stores across 13 states in India, with a total retail area of 0.5 million sq. ft. and Bihar and Uttar Pradesh are their core markets. It targets reaching a store count of 100 in the next two to three years.
"We were highly impressed with Lighthouse's track record of investing in and building leading branded, consumer companies, and believe their assistance will be invaluable for us going forward. We plan to further penetrate in our core markets, such as Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, due to large number of high potential Tier II and III cities, which remain significantly underpenetrated in terms of organized retail,” said Ram Chandra Agarwal, Chairman and Managing Director of V2 Retail.
Sachin Bhartiya, Partner, Lighthouse Advisors says that India has added more than 400 million consumers into the middle-income bucket over the past 15 years. It is this bucket which is driving consumerism in India and V2 Retail is well positioned to cater to this aspiration which presents a strong tailwind for growth.
"We have been witnessing a structural change in the Indian retail landscape over the past few years, and are very excited to partner with V2 Retail. We have great confidence in Ram Chandra Agarwal, the pioneer of value retailing in India, and his team, and believe that the next few years will be transformational for the Company," he added.