ITC to acquire 16% stake in D2C brand Mother Sparsh for Rs 20 cr

ITC Limited announced on Friday that it has agreed to acquire a 16 per cent stake in Mother Sparsh, an ayurvedic and natural personal care brand in the D2C space for Rs 20 crore through a share subscription agreement.

"The said acquisition will, inter alia, enable access to the fast-growing direct to consumer (D2C) space in the 'personal care' category, which has been identified by the company as an area of interest," ITC said in a regulatory filing.

This share acquisition is expected to be completed, in two tranches, within eight months from the date of execution of the Agreements.

Commenting on the development, ITC Chief Executive, Personal Care Products Business Sameer Satpathy said, "We believe that this investment provides an exciting opportunity which is in alignment with our aspiration to have a significant play both in the naturals and Ayurvedic segment as well as in the D2C channel."

Speaking on this investment from ITC, Himanshu, CEO, Mother Sparsh said, "ITC has been a frontrunner in developing a portfolio of vibrant FMCG brands and has been making giant strides in this space through focus on innovation and digitalization. We believe that this partnership will provide a unique synergy of strengths to build our brand further.," Himanshu added.

This investment is in line with the 'ITC Next' strategy articulated by Chairman Sanjiv Puri which aims to build a future-ready organization with a digital first culture, noted the firm in an official statement.

ITC has been focussing on the non-cigarette FMCG business over the past few years. In 2020, it acquired spice-manufacturer Sunrise Foods Private Ltd at an upfront cash deal price of Rs 2,150 crore.

On Friday, ITC's scrip on BSE closed 3.18% lower at Rs 223.95.

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