Honasa Consumer Ltd, the parent firm of D2C major Mamaearth, has put its IPO on hold citing weak market conditions, said a report on Monday
In preliminary informal checks with investors, there was a difference in the valuation that Mamaearth was seeking and what investors were willing to give, reported Reuters
Mamaearth co-founder Varun Alagh has clarified that the company is not withdrawing from the IPO process. Varun Alagh expects SEBI approval on the DRHP by next month
The company is still engaging with SEBI on their DRHP and awaiting formal approval for the same. "We will have 12 months to file RHP and take the company public, which we will do in consultation with our bankers," Mamaearth told Business Today
Mamaearth's spokesperson also told Business Today, "As you are aware pricing and valuations will be discovered as part of our marketing roadshows as we start them."
"The promoters will continue to own over 97% of their ownership in the company after the IPO hence we have no interest in optimising for short term valuations, we are in this for the long term," Mamaearth spokesperson told BT
Mamaearth had proposed a fresh issue of equity shares aggregating up to Rs 400 crore and an offer for sale (OFS) of up to 46,819,635 shares
The selling shareholders in the OFS of Mamaearth IPO would include actor Shilpa Shetty Kundra, Rohit Kumar Bansal, Sofina Ventures and Kunal Bahl, other than two promoters Varun Alagh and Ghazal Alagh
Earlier, reports stated that Mamaearth is planning to seek a valuation of up to $3 billion. However, the unicorn's co-founder Ghazal Alagh had issued a denial saying they do not subscribe to the valuation numbers being mentioned in the media
"Valuation discovery is a process which will take place over time as we get into deeper conversations with the investor community," Mamaearth co-founder and Shark Tank India judge Ghazal Alagh had said earlier
As of September 2021, Mamaearth had raised over $80 million in funding from investors like Sequoia Capital, Matrix Partners, and Fireside Ventures. Mamaearth was last valued at $1.2 billion in January 2022