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Home >Markets >Ipo >Poonawalla-backed Wellness Forever plans $160-mn listing

Poonawalla-backed Wellness Forever plans $160-mn listing

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The pharmacy chain’s revenue grew to ₹870.79 crore in fiscal 2020, from ₹683.25 in the previous fiscal year, while
profit stood at ₹11.25 crore. Photo: iStock

1 min read . Updated: 26 Apr 2021, 12:03 AM IST

Swaraj Singh Dhanjal

The company has already appointed investment banks and other advisers for the IPO
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Wellness Forever, an omnichannel retail pharmacy chain backed by investors such as

Adar Poonawalla of Serum Institute of India Ltd, has started working on an initial public
offering (IPO) that will see it raise ₹1,000-1,200 crore, said two people aware of the
development, on condition of anonymity.

Founded in 2008, Wellness Forever is promoted by Ashraf Biran, Gulshan Bakhtiani and
Mohan Chavan. The company’s Wellness Forever pharmacy stores are present across
Mumbai, Pune, Kolhapur and Satara in Maharashtra, and in Goa and Karnataka. “This
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will be the first pharmacy retail chain to list on the Indian stock exchanges," said one of
the two people cited above.

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“The company has already appointed investment banks and other advisers for the IPO.
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The work on its draft red herring prospectus is expected to begin soon. They will look at
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going public within this calendar year," he added.
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The proposed IPO will be a mix of primary and secondary share sales, said the second
person. “They need money to grow. They want to add hundreds of new stores in the
coming years, expand to more states and all of that will need a lot of money. So far they
have been funded mostly by HNIs (high net-worth individuals) and family offices. The
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IPO will see some of those investors sell part of their stakes in the company," he added.

In November, the company had raised ₹130 crore from HNIs led by Poonawalla. Other
backers include Amit Patni, Rajiv Dadlani and the Thakral family. An email query to
Wellness Forever did not elicit a response.

The pharmacy chain’s revenue grew to ₹870.79 crore in fiscal 2020, from ₹683.25 in the
previous fiscal year, while profit stood at ₹11.25 crore, against ₹8 crore a year ago,
according to a 24 December report by ratings agency Crisil Ltd.
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“Benefits from the promoters’ experience of over three decades and the strong market
position for the Wellness Forever brand in Mumbai and nearby regions should continue
to support the business. The company has expanded in other locations in Maharashtra,
Karnataka and Goa, and currently have 184 outlets. Revenue has steadily increased to
₹870.79 crore in FY20 from ₹330.21 crore in FY16. The company plans to expand by
adding new stores over the next two years," the rating agency said.

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