 "ICICI Venture to sell its entire 42% stake in patisserie chain Theobroma")
ICICI Venture will sell its entire 42 per cent stake in patisserie chain Theobroma Food Pvt Ltd and has begun the talks with merchant bankers, along with other promoters and investors, a report by Mint said on Tuesday. It is expecting the 20-year-old chain to be valued at Rs 2,800 crore.
According to the report, at this valuation, ICICI Venture's stake may fetch Rs 1,200 crore. The deal is expected to take six to nine months as the company's 2023-24 financials are yet to be released.
Theobroma was founded in Mumbai in 2004 by a former pastry chef at Oberoi Hotels Kainaz Messman. It operated as a single-outlet business for a long time. Now, it has 194 outlets across the country and is famous for its brownies, crackers, cookies, pastries and sandwiches.
Even before the Covid-19 pandemic, the company had only 50 outlets in India, primarily in Mumbai and Delhi. After the pandemic, it has expanded to more cities like Pune, Hyderabad, Bengaluru, Chandigarh-Mohali, Chennai and Surat. In FY23, it recorded a net profit of Rs 19.59 crore against a net loss of Rs 11 crore in FY22.
ICICI Venture acquired a stake in the company in 2017 with a commitment of $20 million. This money was used to expand the food chain's presence across the country. ICICI Venture is an alternative investment arm of ICICI Bank. Its other investments include Go Fashion India, Metropolis Health Services and Bharat Biotech.
The Mint report also said that private equity firms may aim to take up ICICI Venture's stake in the company.