Sells the balance stake of 18.7% in Nobel Hygiene to Quadria Capital for Rs 191 crores
Access India Fund and its co-investors (Access PE) today exited its total stake in Nobel Hygiene and achieved 8x return with 28% IRR.
The stake was picked up by Quadria Capital, who also invested in the company and acquired further stake from CLSA Capital, investing almost Rs 500 crs in the transaction.
Access PE had invested Rs 37 crs in Nobel in 2013 for a 29% stake. It exited partially in 2015 when it sold 10.3% stake to CLSA. Access achieved a complete exit in 2021 by selling the balance 18.7% stake to Quadria for Rs 191 crs.
During Access’s investment period from 2013 to 2021, Nobel consolidated its adult diaper leadership and made significant inroads in baby diapers. Today, Nobel is the dominant market leader in adult diapers with its brand Friends, and the largest Indian player in baby diapers after the MNCs with its brands, Teddyy and Snuggy.
Globally, adult diapers are a significant consumer category at about 25% of the baby diaper market size.
Sangeeta Modi, Managing Partner, Access Asset Managers, said “We partnered with Nobel in early 2013 when the company was about Rs 112 crs in revenue and already had a dominant market leadership in adult diapers. We have worked successfully with the founder Kamal Johari, who has achieved a five-fold growth in revenue during the period of our investment. This investment validates our thesis of investing in market leaders in sunrise industries. The Indian diapers segment is still underpenetrated as India has by far the world’s largest population of infants and second largest population of seniors”.
Veda Corporate Advisors acted as exclusive bankers to the transaction and Mulla & Mulla were the legal advisors to Access India Fund.
Source: Business World
