The Print Bazaar to raise Rs 100-crore plus investment for expansion

According to the company, the resultant inflow of funds will be pumped into scaling up the infrastructure from the current five stores to 90-plus. Print Bazaar is also open to entering into a strategic tie-up with logistics companies to make it more accessible to its band of target customers.

Commenting on their plans to raise investment and expansion, Sethunath P, CEO at TPB, said, “We are primarily looking at raising capital in two phases for driving the expansion of The Print Bazaar and upgrading the infrastructure. The first phase will include raising a capital of Rs 25-30crore by March 2012, which will be utilised to develop a hub in Delhi to cater to B2B, marquee clients and specialty items.

“The second phase will include raising 75-80crore to cover the North India footprint with 50 stores and pilot stores in Mumbai and Bengaluru. We plan to grow to 90 stores with a pan-India presence spread across all five metros and ten tier-two cities generating approximately Rs 140-crore revenue in the next 24 months,” he shared.

Asked how the investments will be utilised, Ashok Jain, chief finance officer at TPB, said, “The investments that will be raised will not just be used to expand, but we will also be invested in creating a presence in e-commerce, and backend infrastructure; make it more robust by investing in training and development of people. We want to have our staff well-trained and make sure there is a good system for their development.

He further added, “The Print Bazaar is open for anyone who believes in niche businesses and has the potential to take the concept to flying heights."

Commenting on planned key tie-ups, Ashok Jain, said, “The Print Bazaar is also open to having a strategic tie-up with a logistic company that can make The Print Bazaar easily accessible and benefit in return, or a large retailer, as it is incremental revenue and an emerging aspirational segment for B2C. We are open to all businesses that can leverage our presence in print retail as well as consumer relationships. In fact, all players in the print industry, including printer manufacturers could also be our partners based on their thinking and strategic direction.”

Commenting on the scope of growth of Bazaars in the print retail industry, Sethunath said, “Printing cuts across regions and languages ­— it’s a national need, hence The Print Bazaar has the opportunity to have a pan-India presence. Chic printing retail store has a huge potential in India, with international players eyeing the unexplored Indian sector. We already have players like Fedex Kinkos with more than 1,800 stores across Asia, Europe and North America with revenue of over $2-billion. There are other players like Sir Speedy and Desco, which are also present across other countries.”