Amazon, Samara Capital to shed 20% stake in More Retail before IPO

The Amazon-Samara combine has approached family offices and domestic capital investors for the deal, sources said

More Retail, a company owned by Amazon and private equity firm Samara Capital, is looking to sell about a fifth of its equity to external investors for about $2 billion, an Economic Times (ET) report said.

Amazon and Samara have approached family offices and domestic capital investors for this round, sources said, adding that the planned share sale comes ahead of a potential public listing in the next 12-18 months.

The retail chain, which was formerly a part of the Aditya Birla Group, was acquired by Amazon-Samara in 2019 at an estimated value of under $600 million.

"There have been discussions about diluting 10-20 per cent in More to attract domestic investors before the planned IPO. It is likely to be a 15 per cent sale to investors,” sources told ET.

On the other hand, an Amazon spokesperson stated that the company doesn’t comment on speculations about potential future actions.

People aware of the matter told ET that Amazon is working to further integrate More Retail stores with its online grocery offering Amazon Fresh. This is being discussed in order to boost the growth plans of More amid increased online adoption for grocery and essentials.

In New Delhi and Bengaluru, Amazon Fresh has tested store pickups for its Amazon Fresh grocery orders, they said.

Witzig Advisory Services is the holding company of More Retail houses, in which Samara owns 51 per cent stake and Amazon owns the rest. The investment is part of Amazon’s plan to develop a significant omnichannel strategy for its grocery business in India, while also expanding its dominant online presence.

Amazon had big plans for offline retail in India, and in 2019 it invested in Future Coupons, which ran Kishore Biyani’s Future Retail. However, it has been embroiled in a legal battle over the transaction since Reliance Industries announced plans to acquire retail assets of Future Group.

Prior to the legal battle, Amazon was using Future Retail’s BigBazaar stores for its grocery offerings. This included its previous offering of large grocery purchases, Pantry. In 2021, Pantry was merged with Amazon Fresh to create a uniform product offering for Amazon’s India customers.