Tata's And Haldirams Denies Talk On 51% Equity Stake
The Tata Group and Haldirams in talks for 51% stake in the snack maker’s unit but the valuation at $10 billion becomes a matter of discomfort. The Tata group’s evaluation is that the valuation is very high. Haldirams is also said to be discussing a sale of 10% stake with private equity firms, including Bain Capital, the Reuters reported a third party on this.
As the news of the talks are circulating, there are also reports of denial of any such talk from Haldirams. “Snacks giant Haldiram has denied reports that it is talks with Tata Consumer for the sale of 51 percent stake to the Tata Group company”, the CNBC TV18 said. It also reported the Tata consumer unit as saying that there was no comments on market speculation.
Haldirams is family run multinational sweets, snacks and restaurant company which holds a huge space in the Indian market. It was started in 1937 with and has its presence in very small and independent businesses like mom and pop shops with crispy bhujia”s for Rs. 10, to malls and restaurants on its own. The company also has an overseas market presence in countries like Singapore and US with restaurants. As per the Euromonitor International, Haldirams has almost 13% of India’s $6.2 billion savoury snack market with Pepsi also rounding up to similar 13%, the Reuters reported.
If the Tata’s consumer unit clinches the deal, then the market space and reach of Tata’s would increase. It could turn into a significant player along with Pepsi and Reliance Retail. With the news being reported, Tata’s shares went up by a 4% in Mumbai. The Tata consumer products has a partnership with Starbucks and owns Tetley, a UK tea company. As a consumer unit of Tata group, Tata sells pulses, salt and mineral water. The group’s business is more on auto, aviation and hotel.
Last year, in an interview to CNBC TV18, Manohar Lal Agrawal, Haldiram”s Chairman, had said that the company planned to bring in private equity investors and debut on the stock market in a span of 2-3 years, the Reuters reported.
