BLACKSTONE – RTN asia

Brand Factory, Bangalore Kishore Biyani owned Future Group announced that US-based private equity firm Blackstone will take a 6% stake in its fashion/garments unit, Future Lifestyle Fashions, by investing ₹1,750cr ($250 mln) into Ryka Commercial Ventures Pvt Ltd, the holding company of FLFL, and directly into FLFL. Blackstone joins other groups such as L Catterton, Premji Invest and Apollo Global Management as a stakeholder in Future Lifestyle. "With this transaction, Blackstone will be the only financial partner in Ryka," the company said. "Proceeds of the investment has been utilized to retire/pre-retire all existing financial obligations of Ryka, consolidating FLFL’s encumbrances with one long term investor," Future Group said. FLFL, which owns several garment brands and operates 346 stores under the names of Central, Brand Factory and Planet Sports. The Rs 6,000 cr revenue company holds the rights to brands like Lee Cooper, Indigo Nation, Jealous 21, BARE and aLL in India. “This is our first investment in this sector. We look forward to being a value-added investor as FLFL and the Future Group continue to cater to the fashion needs of aspiring India," said Luv Parikh, Managing Director, Blackstone. Kishore Biyani, Group CEO of Future Group, said Blackstone will support his company in "the continued growth of our fashion business, bringing global perspectives that will help us take FLFL to the next level.” Blackstone is one of the world’s leading investment firms, with $545 billion in assets under management. The group includes investment vehicles focused on private equity, real estate, public debt and equity, non-investment grade credit, real assets and secondary funds.

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Blackstone invests Rs 1,750 cr into Future Lifestyle Fashions