Investcorp sells its stake in Indian luggage brand Safari

The move marks the company's fourth exit in India in the last two and a half years

Bahrain-based Investcorp acquired German cybersecurity company Avira for $180 million. Photo: Investcorp

Investcorp, the Bahrain-based asset manager that counts Mubadala Investment Company as its biggest shareholder, has exited its investment in the publicly-listed Indian luggage brand, Safari Industries.

The company invested $10.36 million in the Mumbai-based company in February 2021.

Financial details about the exit were not disclosed.

During Investcorp’s ownership period, Safari Industries increased its production capacity and expanded its physical stores footprint in new and under-served markets in India, Investcorp said in a statement on Monday.

“As we expand our investments across India and continuously review and strengthen our portfolio, Safari is another example of how we invest and accelerate the growth in companies with an exceptional market position, solid fundamentals and strong growth potential," Yusef Al Yusef, head of Investcorp’s Private Wealth, said.

"This is our fourth exit in India in just a few years, highlighting how our approach of working side by side with ambitious companies to help them generate and realise value pays dividends for both the companies and our investors.”

In the last two and a half years, Investcorp has sold its stakes in three other Indian companies including ASG Eye Hospital, an eyecare hospital chain, InCred, a tech-enabled financing company, and Bewakoof, a direct-to-consumer online apparel brand.

Currently, the company manages about $1 billion worth of assets in Asia’s third-largest economy, which it aims to grow to $5 billion in the next three to five years with investments across six core sectors: health care, logistics, social infrastructure, IT and IT services, consumer tech and financial services.

Investcorp aims to finance new deals through a $400 million India-focused fund, as well as a new fund that it plans to launch in the future, Rishi Kapoor, co-chief executive of Investcorp, told The National in May.

The Indian economy is “growing and is one of the fastest-growing large economies in the world and it is likely to continue to grow. The regulatory and political landscape has become much more stable and dependable over the last several years, including the legal institutional architecture”, Mr Kapoor said.

In India, Investcorp seeks mid-market companies across consumption-linked sectors and in the real estate business.

In the private equity space, Investcorp targets opportunities across the consumer tech, healthcare, financial services, retail, software as a service, e-commerce, and technology sectors.

Its investments over the last four years include V-Ensure, Intergrow Brands, Freshtohome, Zolo, Citykart, NephroPlus, Unilog and XpressBees.

Last year, it also led an investment totalling 5.45 billion Indian rupees ($66.3 million) in Global Dental Services, Asia’s largest dental chain and one of the top 15 dental services organisations globally.

Set up in 1982, Investcorp has grown to become one of the leading alternative asset management companies in the region.

It oversees $50 billion in assets, including those managed by third parties, and has 14 offices in the US, Europe, the Middle East and elsewhere in Asia, including India, China, Japan and Singapore.