Tag: Warburg Pincus

  • Kalyan Jewellers expands in Punjab with Rs. 75 crore investment

    Kalyan Jewellers expands in Punjab with Rs. 75 crore investment

    MUMBAI: Kalyan Jewellers, one of India’s leading and trusted jewellery brands launched showrooms in Amritsar and Jalandhar launching the Northern leg of the company’s domestic expansion plan. On December 7, Kalyan’s national brand ambassador, Mrs. Aishwarya Rai Bachchan inaugurated both these showrooms. The showroom in Amritsar is located at Mall Road and the showroom in Jalandhar is located at Model Town. The expansion is part of Kalyan Jewellers’ efforts to expand its presence in Punjab with an investment of Rs. 75 crore in the two showrooms. Kalyan Jewellers is also present in Mohali and Ludhiana in Punjab.

    Kalyan Jewellers has added a record 11 showrooms in the last 60 days including inaugurating 5 showrooms on the same day in Kerala recently. Kalyan Jewellers will significantly boost its distribution network in the calendar year 2014 by over 30% with the addition of new showrooms.  

     

    T S Kalyanaraman, Chairman and Managing Director, Kalyan Jewellers, said, “We are delighted to launch our new showrooms in Amritsar and Jalandhar which are strategic locations in Punjab. We have timed the opening of the showrooms during the wedding season as we can cater to the demand of exquisite designs in gold and precious jewellery.  Our stringent quality standards have already struck a chord with the discerning customers in the state – a relationship which we are striving to grow.”  

     

    Rajesh Kalyanaraman, Executive Director, Kalyan Jewellers said, “The two new showrooms in Punjab will boost our presence in North India. We continue to be focused on the aggressive domestic expansion plan to boost our network to reach out to customers across the country.”

     

    Kalyan Jewellers recently attracted a significant investment of Rs. 1,200 crore from the private equity investor Warburg Pincus. The investment has accelerated the growth plans of Kalyan Jewellers as it consolidates its leading position in existing markets and forays into global markets including Singapore and Malaysia. Kalyan is already present in the UAE with nine showrooms and plans to expand into Kuwait and Qatar.

     

    Ramesh Kalayanaraman, Executive Director, Kalyan Jewellers said, “Our focus on enhancing our network during the year 2014 has been implemented and we have leveraged our recognition as a national brand by developing our presence in key markets across the country.”   

     

    Kalyan Jewellers has set industry level standards on customer experience, innovations and transparent pricing. The brand’s leadership position in the Indian jewellery industry is defined by a customer-centric business model that includes many “firsts” such as:

     

    • introducing BIS certification of gold jewellery

     

    • introducing a customer loyalty program, which today has more than  16 lakh members

     

    • pioneering the use of detailed price tags, thus demystifying making charges and providing increased transparency to customers, which has become a best practice in the industry

     

    • introducing the concept of neighbourhood customer service centers in the jewellery industry under the “My Kalyan” brand

     

  • CarTrade.com raises Rs 185 crore

    CarTrade.com raises Rs 185 crore

    MUMBAI: Online auto classifieds platform CarTrade.com has raised Rs 185 crore to diversify and strengthen the portal’s offerings for consumers and dealers.

     

    The infusion of capital was led by an affiliate of Warburg Pincus along with participation from existing investors Canaan Partners and Tiger Global.

     

    Speaking about the fund raising, CarTrade.com founder and CEO Vinay Sanghi said, “We are extremely happy to have Warburg Pincus on board as a partner. The funds raised shall be employed to further expand our services to help us offer our consumers and dealers a seamless online experience.

     

    “We also plan to focus significantly on the mobile space and provide products and services, which will be best in class and in many cases the first of its kind,” he added.

     

    CarTrade offers a selection of over 100,000 listings, price information and certification for used cars. For new buyers, it offers reviews, on-road prices, car comparisons and latest auto news.

     

    Warburg Pincus is focused on growth investing and has over $ 39 billion in assets under management spanning over 125 companies.

     

    “We see tremendous potential in the Indian automobile market. CarTrade is one of the most innovative platforms in the online auto sector, and has shown strong growth momentum in the last couple of years. Warburg Pincus is excited about the opportunity to partner with a very talented team to further build on its position and to accelerate its growth plans,” commented Warburg Pincus India managing director Nitin Nayar.

     

    CarTrade is promoted by former head of Mahindra First Choice Sanghi and Nirvana Venture Advisors ex-managing director and eBay India former country head Rajan Mehra.

     

  • Quikr raises Rs 365 crore for future expansion

    Quikr raises Rs 365 crore for future expansion

    Mumbai: Valued at around Rs 1800 crore, the online classifieds platform, Quikr has raised Rs 365 crore in the latest round of funding. The investment was led by new investor Tiger Global Management, a global investment firm, with participation from its current investors.

     

    The company, which has so far received funding of around Rs 1,300 crore since its inception in 2008, will use the funds towards product development and further expansion of its mobile business, Quikr said in a statement.

     

    Commenting on the latest funding, Quicker founder and CEO Pranay Chulet said, “The explosive growth in mobile Internet is fundamentally reshaping the Indian classified Internet market, and we are well positioned to be at the forefront of this growth.”

     

    “This funding round is a powerful validation of our local knowledge and connections, skilled execution and quality management team. We are excited to welcome Tiger Global to Quikr as we continue to further grow our platform,” he added.

     

    The Mumbai-based company’s current investors include Kinnevik, Matrix Partners India, Nokia Growth Partners, Norwest Venture Partners, Omidyar Network, Warburg Pincus and eBay Inc.

     

    In the previous round of funding held in March, Quikr was valued at about Rs 1,525 crore. At that time, the company had raised Rs 550 crore in an investment round led by Swedish investment firm Investment Kinnevik.

     

    Talking about the new investment, Tiger Global Management partner Lee Fixel said, “Quikr has grown rapidly to become one of India’s major classifieds players with a deep understanding of the local market. By leveraging the company’s strengths as a local player, Quikr has seized a tremendous opportunity in a rapidly growing market. We look forward to supporting the Quikr team.”

     

    Quikr records 30 million users a month across 940 cities in India. These consumers come to Quikr to sell, buy, rent or find products and services in a variety of categories including mobile phones, household goods, cars, real estate, jobs, services and education.