Indus Mobile Distribution to come out with IPO


Hyderabad: The Indus Mobile Distribution, promoters of leading mobile phone retail chain Univercell, will soon come out with an initial public offering (IPO). The funds raised will be used for increasing the number of outlets and launching its own brand of mobile phones, said, company Founder and Managing Director D Sathish Babu. "Now that the market is growing, and with the introduction of 3G services, it will further grow. So we want to capture the opportunity," Babu told PTI, refusing to comment on the size of the IPO. He said that the board of directors are working on the finer details of the offering, and will launch it in a year's time. "We will file the Red Herring prospectus in the Bombay Stock Exchange soon," Babu added. Private Equity firm People Capital had invested 100 crore in three phases over the past two years for a majority stake in the company. Babu said that the company is in talks with various suppliers to launch its own cellphone brand. "The discussions... are in the final stage and we will launch our own brand within six months," Babu said. Ramesh Barath, Vice President (New Business Development & Marketing) of the company, said that plans were underway to increase the turnover of the company from 600 crore in the last fiscal to 1,000 crore within two years. "Our turnover will reach 800 this year, before touching the 1,000-crore mark next financial year," he said, adding that the number of retail stores - which currently stands at 300 - would touch 500 in two years.
Source: PTI