In a bid to further expand its presence in the online retail market of India, Mukesh Ambani led Reliance Industries has acquired a huge 96% stake in the online furniture retailer Urban Ladder for over ₹ 182 crore. The deal was made through Reliance Retail Ventures Limited (RRVL), the retail arm of the company.
The company has been trying to expand its presence in India’s online retail market, placing huge bets on its Amazon alternative- JioMart and raising gargantuan amounts of money for Reliance Retail. Earlier this year, it had acquired a controlling stake in Future Group, India’s second largest retailer. The deal has come under scrutiny from Amazon, which had made an investment in Future Coupons last year, and claims that the deal with Mukesh Ambani is a breach of the contract signed between the two companies.
Nonetheless, the deal with Urban Ladder will provide Reliance the opportunity to further bolster its place as a contender to the likes of Amazon and Flipkart. Back in August, it had acquired a majority stake in the online pharmacy Netmeds, and with this investment, Reliance has added yet another name to its growing portfolio of online retail offerings.
According to filings made by the company with Bombay Stock Exchange, Reliance will have the opportunity of acquiring the remaining 4% stake in Urban Ladder, increasing its stake to a perfect 100%. Moreover, RRVL has proposed to invest an additional ₹75 crore in the startup, is expected to be completed by December 2023.
“The aforesaid investment will further enable the group`s digital and new commerce initiatives and widen the bouquet of consumer products provided by the group, while enhancing user engagement and experience across its retail offerings,” the filings said.
Reliance Retail has raised north of ₹ 47,000 crore in the past two months, by taking in investments from the likes of PIF, General Atlantic, Silver Lake, KKR, Mubadala, GIC, TPG and Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA).
