Koutons raises Rs 21 cr through pre-IPO placement

PTI, Apr 19, 2007, 07.30pm IST

MUMBAI: Apparel manufacturer Koutons Retail India Ltd on Thursday said Passport
India Investments (Mauritius) Ltd, an overseas fund, has picked shares worth Rs
21 crore in the company in a pre-IPO placement round.Koutons has alloted six lak
h shares at a price of Rs 350 per share to Passport Investments Ltd aggregating
Rs 21 crore, the company said in a statement.The company has since June 2006 rai
sed Rs 121.6 crore through pre-IPO placement to investors including UTI Venture
Funds Management Company and Argonaut Ventures, it said.Koutons has filed its Dr
aft Red Herring Prospectus with market regulator SEBI to enter the capital marke
t."We are well positioned to capture considerable growth opportunities in Indian
apparel manufacturing and retail sector with our low-cost sourcing capabilities
, unique brand positioning and merchandising expertise," Koutons Chairman D P S
Kohli said in the statement.The company operates out of 26 manufacturing and war
ehouse facilities in and around Gurgaon and has a network of 674 retail outlets
across the country