Reliance Industries Ltd said on Tuesday that its unit Reliance Retail Ltd (RRL) has acquired consumer goods company ITC Ltd’s menswear brand John Players.
“The acquisition will bolster RRL’s readymade garments and accessories portfolio in the fashion and lifestyle retail space and further consolidate leadership position as India’s largest, most profitable and fastest-growing retailer.” – Reliance spokesperson.
Reliance Retail runs retail fashion outlets through Reliance Trends and Ajio.com.
ITC sold the brand John Players and related trademarks and intellectual property to Reliance Retail as part of its restructuring plan, an ITC spokesperson said. However, no financial details of the deal was disclosed.
According to a media report, Reliance bought the John Players brand and distribution rights through 750 stores, in addition to 65 exclusive franchise outlets, for an estimated 1.50 billion rupees (US $ 21.79 million).
Reliance plans to diversify into e-commerce and expand in fashion in its endeavour to grab a dominant share of Indian consumer spending in a struggle with rivals, particularly Amazon and Walmart-owned Flipkart.
The sale of the brand is part of a recast by ITC of its apparel business to focus on the premium end through the WLS stores that were relaunched last month, earlier known as ITC Wills Lifestyle.
Reliance shares climbed 1.6 percent as of 0602 GMT while those of ITC were 0.95 percent lower in Mumbai trading.
