Aditya Birla to buy 51% stake in women’s apparel company TCNS Clothing

Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail Limited (ABFRL), an Indian fashion and apparel company which is part of the Aditya Birla Group, has agreed to take a controlling stake of 51% in TCNS Clothing, a women’s branded apparel company, for a sum of around INR 1,650 crores.

The India-based TCNS Clothing owns ethnic brands such as W, Wishful, Aurelia, Elleven, and Folksong.

The products of the women’s apparel company include top-wear, bottom-wear, combination sets, drapes, and accessories, which are sold across India, Nepal, Sri Lanka, and Mauritius via various distribution channels.

As of 31 March 2023, TCNS Clothing sold its products through more than 650 exclusive brand outlets, over 2300 large format store outlets, and over 1,100 multi-brand outlets located across 29 Indian states and two union territories.

Anant Daga — TCNS Clothing Managing Director said: “TCNS has been a pioneer in branded women’s ethnic wear market in the country. Over the last 20 years, we have built India’s most successful women’s franchise on the back of our leading brands.

“The market continues to offer long-term growth opportunities and our partnership with ABFRL will help us fully realize this potential. ABFRL’s proven brand- building capability, distribution strength and strong ecosystem of partners will help our brands into its next phase of growth and profitability.”

According to Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail, the deal will be executed through the acquisition of TCNS Clothing’s founding promoter’s stake of 22% through a share purchase agreement and a conditional public open offer to buy a stake of 29% from public shareholders at a price of INR 503 per share. This will be followed by merger between Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail and TCNS Clothing under which public shareholders of the latter will exchange six shares for 11 shares of the former.

Ashish Dikshit — Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail Managing Director said: “As young Indians identify a new-found confidence in their identities woven around Indian culture and heritage, the next set of leading consumer brands will be built in the Indian ethnic wear space.

“TCNS, through its brands W, Aurelia, Wishful, Folksong & Elleven, is catering to the Indian women’s fashion needs across markets and price points. Each of these brands have been built over a long period of time and enjoy tremendous consumer love. This transaction is a pivotal piece of our strategy of building India’s most comprehensive ethnic wear portfolio.”

The closing of the deal will be conditional on receipt of approvals from various regulatory bodies, including the Competition Commission of India, stock exchanges, SEBI, and National Company Law Tribunal.