Senco Gold charts South India plan

The company earmarks around Rs.100 crore for investing in the South

July 31, 2015 10:52 pm | Updated 10:52 pm IST - Bengaluru:

The Kolkata-based jewellery group Senco Gold is planning to expand its footprint in South India, a market dominated by major players such as Joy Alukkas, Kalyan and Bhima.

As part of the strategy, the company, which operates around 66 stores in eastern part of India, has already opened three stores in Bengaluru. The group has also earmarked around Rs.100 crore for investing in the South.

Founded in 1938, Senco Gold and Diamond has big presence in Bihar, Assam, Odisha, West Bengal and Jharkhand. “We are quite bullish about South India, though it is dominated by the major retail players. Our approach is to enter the major cities in the South within the next three years,” said Suvankar Sen, Executive Director, Senco Gold an Diamonds.

“We are planning to invest Rs.100 crore in the South of which Rs. 30 crore has already been made in setting up three stores in Bengaluru,” he added.

According to estimates, around 600 tonnes of gold is used in India for making jewellery out of which 35-40 per cent is used in South India.

In the initial stages of the South foray, Senco will open eight stores in various cities such as Bengaluru, Chennai, Vijayawada and Hyderabad among others. The company believes that with launch of operations in major cities, it will get visibility and popularity in South.

“Presence in major cities will give us visibility and goodwill that will help us to expand further into other smaller towns,” stated Mr.Sen.

IPO planned

Senco is planning to go for an initial public offering by the end of 2016. In October last, SAIF partner had acquired 20 per cent of stake in Senco by investing around Rs.80 crore. It is also planning to launch on e-commerce platform. “We need more capital to fund our growth plans. So we will go for an IPO, the amount we need to raise has not been finalised. With our excellent team and corporate governance we are confident of getting listed,” he added.

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