Taipei company to pick up 25% in Abee Info venture

The Taipei-based VK Gurbani Company Ltd, which is in the business of computer software and peripherals exports in Taiwan and China, said it will pick up a 25 per cent stake in the proposed venture of retail branded shops and 'Dial-A-Easyfill' of the Pune-based computer hardware and peripherals company, Abee Info Consumables Ltd.

The equity participation, according to B B Somani, managing director of Abee, listed with the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE), will be by way of equity to the tune of $500,000 and a representative of Gurbani will also represent the board of Abee.

"We have been negotiating the deal with Gurbani for the last few months and during the first week of December, last year, our board approved the proposal of foreign investment for the new ventures which will attract an initial investment of around Rs 20 crore. Only during this week, we got the confirmation from the Taipei company and their investment now awaits only the statutory approvals of the concerned government bodies and organisations," Somani said on Thursday.

During second-half of November, Abee had signed an agreement with the Bangalore-based Select Technologies Ltd (STL), a wholly owned subsidiary of Wep Peripherals Ltd, for the supply of printer ribbons, and subsequently decided to enhance the existing ribbon production capacity at AICL's plant in Himachal Pradesh.

"With the deal struck with the Taipei company, our plan for setting up 120 Abee Shopee, retail branded shops for marketing our 'Easyfill' cartridges will expedite and we are targeting to set up 50 such exclusive shops across the country in next one year. By the end of the fiscal year 2005-06, we will be adding 70 more shops, thus setting up 120 shops in 75 cities. Gurbani will also take part in our venture of 'Dial-A-Easyfill', which will be the country's first such initiative by any computer company to provide sales and service of printer cartridges at the doorsteps of the customers," said Somani.

Somani said during March this year, Abee will start a techno-commercial feasibility study for marketing and sales of its products in China, Taiwan and Hong Kong in which Gurbani, its new partner, will play a pivot role.