Reliance Retail buys 25.8% stake in Dunzo for $200 million
New Delhi, Jan 6: Reliance Retail has bought a 25.8 per cent stake in Dunzo, India's leading quick commerce player, for USD 200 million (around Rs 1,488 crore) as it looks to expand its presence in online grocery delivery business.
Dunzo has raised USD 240 million (about Rs 1,787 crore) in its latest funding round that was led by Reliance Retail Ventures Ltd(RRVL) - the retail arm of Reliance Industries, the two firms said in a statement.
Existing investors Lightbox, Lightrock, 3L Capital and Alteria Capital also participated in the funding round.
"With an investment of USD 200 million, Reliance Retail will own 25.8 per cent stake," the statement said.
In addition to the funding, Dunzo and Reliance Retail will also enter into certain business partnerships. Dunzo will enable hyperlocal logistics for the retail stores operated by RRVL, further adding onto Reliance Retail's omni-channel capabilities.
Dunzo will also facilitate last mile deliveries for JioMart's merchant network.
The capital will be used to further Dunzo's vision to be the largest quick commerce business in the country, enabling instant delivery of essentials from a network of micro warehouses while also expanding its B2B business vertical to enable logistics for local merchants in Indian cities, the statement said.
We are seeing a shift in consumption patterns to online and have been highly impressed with how Dunzo has disrupted the space. Dunzo is the pioneer of Quick Commerce in India and we want to support them in furthering their ambitions of becoming a prominent local commerce enabler in the country, RRVL Director Isha Ambani said.
She added that through the partnership with Dunzo, the company will be able to provide increased convenience to Reliance Retail's consumers and differentiated customer experience through rapid delivery of products from Reliance Retail stores.
Our merchants will get access to the hyperlocal delivery network of Dunzo to support their growth as they move their business online through JioMart, she said.
Dunzo is a leading player in the quick commerce category which has an addressable market opportunity of over USD 50 billion.
Currently, Dunzo is available across seven metro cities in India and the additional capital will be used to expand the quick commerce business to 15 cities, the statement said.
Dunzo launched its instant delivery model Dunzo Daily' in Bengaluru earlier this year, which is seeing over 20 per cent week-on- week growth.
The Dunzo Daily model delivers daily and weekly essentials within 15-20 minutes, with a focus on providing high quality fruits and vegetables.
While traditional e-commerce deliveries take a day or longer, quick commerce (or q-commerce)
enables customers to get small quantities of goods to customers in a shorter period of time.
According to a RedSeer report, the quick commerce sector in India is expected to grow to USD 5 billion by 2025 from the current USD 0.3 billion.
The report said quick commerce is growing in India on the back of trends like a shift in consumer behaviour, entry of big players like BigBasket and Blinkit , and rise of instant delivery platforms.
Last month, food delivery platform Swiggy announced an investment of USD 700 million (about Rs 5,250 crore) in its express grocery delivery service, Instamart.
Previously, Ola had also started piloting a quick delivery service for items like groceries in Bengaluru.
RRVL has been on an aggressive acquisition spree to consolidate its position in the Indian market, while bolstering its digital play to tap into the burgeoning demand for e-commerce services in the country.
In November last year, RRVL acquired the retail lingerie businesses under the amante' umbrella brand from MAS Brands, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Sri Lanka-based MAS Holdings, for an undisclosed amount.
In October, RRVL had acquired a 52 per cent stake in veteran couturier Ritu Kumar's firm Ritika Pvt Ltd for an undisclosed amount, while Reliance Brands Ltd (RBL) has announced it would pick a 40 per cent minority stake in fashion designer Manish Malhotra's MM Styles Pvt Ltd.
In September, RRVL had acquired the control of search & discovery platform Just Dial for a consideration of Rs 3,497 crore.
Last month, RBL and Indian couturier Anamika Khanna agreed to a 60:40 joint venture for owning and developing fashion brand AK-OK.
It also bought a minority stake in Actoserba Active Wholesale, which owns and operates online lingerie store Zivame, last year.
RRVL, a subsidiary of RIL, is the holding company of all the retail companies of the Group. It reported a consolidated turnover of Rs 1,57,629 crore and a net profit of Rs 5,481 crore for the year ended March 31, 2021.
In 2020, Reliance Industries had raised Rs 47,265 crore by selling around 10 per cent stake in RRVL. It had raised funds from global private equity funds which included - Silver Lake Partners, KKR, GIC, TPG and General Atlantic, as well as sovereign wealth funds Mubadala, ADIA and PIF.
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MP HC sets up judicial commission to probe water contamination in Indore
Indore (PTI): The Indore bench of Madhya Pradesh High Court on Tuesday set up a commission of inquiry comprising a former HC judge to probe the issue of water contamination in city's Bhagirathpura, saying the matter requires probe by an independent, credible authority and "urgent judicial scrutiny".
It also directed the commission to submit an interim report after four weeks from the date of commencement of proceedings.
A division bench of Justices Vijay Kumar Shukla and Alok Awasthi constituted the commission while hearing several public interest litigations (PILs) filed simultaneously regarding the deaths of several people in Bhagirathpura due to the consumption of contaminated water.
The HC reserved the order after hearing all the parties during the day, and released it late at night.
The state government on Tuesday told the HC that the deaths of 16 people in Indore's Bhagirathpura area was possibly linked to a month-long outbreak of vomiting and diarrhoea caused by contaminated drinking water.
The government presented an audit report of 23 deaths from the current gastroenteritis epidemic in Bhagirathpura before the bench, suggesting that 16 of these fatalities may have been linked to the outbreak of vomiting and diarrhoea caused by contaminated drinking water.
The report, prepared by a committee of five experts from the city's Government Mahatma Gandhi Memorial Medical College, stated that the deaths of four people in Bhagirathpura were unrelated to the outbreak, while no conclusion could be reached regarding the cause of death of three other people in the area.
During the hearing, the high court sought to know from the state government the scientific basis behind its report.
The division bench also expressed surprise at the state government's use of the term "verbal autopsy" in relation to the report, sarcastically stating that it had heard the term for the first time.
The HC expressed concern over the Bhagirathpura case, stating that the situation was "alarming," and noted that cases of people falling ill due to contaminated drinking water have also been reported in Mhow, near Indore.
In its order, the HC said the serious issue concerning contamination of the drinking water supply in Bhagirathpura area allegedly resulted in widespread health hazards to residents, including children and elderly persons.
According to the petitioners and media reports, death toll is about 30 till today, but the report depicts only 16 without any basis or record, it said.
It is averred that sewage mixing, leakage in the pipeline, and failure of civic authorities to maintain potable water standards have led to the outbreak of water-borne diseases. Photographs, medical reports, and complaints submitted to the authorities prima facie indicate a matter requiring urgent judicial scrutiny, the HC said.
"Considering the gravity of the allegation and affecting the right to life under Article 21 of the Constitution of India and the need for an independent fact-finding exercise, the Court is of the opinion that the matter requires investigation by an independent, credible authority," it said.
"Accordingly, we appoint Justice Sushil Kumar Gupta, former judge of the Madhya Pradesh High Court, a one-man commission of inquiry into the issues relating to water contamination in Bhagirathpura, Indore, and its impact on other areas of the city," the HC added.
As per the order, the commission shall inquire into and submit a report on the cause of contamination -- whether the drinking water supplied to Bhagirathpura was contaminated; and the source and nature of contamination (sewage ingress, industrial discharge, pipeline damage etc).
The panel will also probe the number of actual deaths of affected residents on account of contaminated water; find out the nature of disease reported and adequacy of medical response and preventive measures; suggest immediate steps required to ensure safe drinking water as well as long-term infrastructural and monitoring reforms.
It will also identify and fix responsibility upon the officers and officials found prima facie responsible for the Bhagirathpura water contamination incident, and suggest guidelines for compensation to affected residents, particularly vulnerable sections.
The commission shall have powers of a civil court for the purpose of summoning officials and witnesses; calling up records from the government department, hospitals, laboratories and civic bodies; ordering water quality testing through accredited laboratories; conducting spot inspections.
All state authorities involving district administration, Indore Municipal Corporation, public health engineering department and Madhya Pradesh Pollution Control Board shall extend full co-operation and provide records as sought by the commission, it said.
The state government shall provide office space, staff, and logistical support to the commission, it said.
During the hearing in the day, the state government also presented a status report to the court in this matter.
According to reports, a total of 454 patients were admitted to local hospitals during the vomiting and diarrhea outbreak, of whom 441 have been discharged after treatment, and 11 are currently hospitalised.
According to officials, due to a leak in the municipal drinking water pipeline in Bhagirathpura, sewage from a toilet was also mixed in the water.
