Amazon Backed More Retail Plans Rs.2,000 Crore IPO

More Retail, a supermarket chain backed by Amazon and Samara Capital, has announced plans to raise approximately ₹2,000 crore through an Initial Public Offering (IPO) in 2026. The funds raised will primarily be used for expanding the company’s store network and reducing its debt.

How the Funds Will Be Used

The Managing Director of More Retail, Vinod Nambiar, explained that the company plans to use the money raised from the IPO to expand its store count to 3,000 by the year 2030. A portion of the funds will also go toward paying off the company’s current debt, which is around ₹500 crore. This debt comes from loans and non-convertible debentures (NCDs). By clearing this debt, More Retail aims to become almost debt-free.

IPO Structure and Stakeholder Involvement

The IPO will mainly consist of fresh capital raised from the market, rather than the sale of existing shares. The company’s promoters, Samara Capital and Amazon, who together own 99% of the company’s shares, are not expected to sell their stake in the IPO. This means the IPO will not have a large offer-for-sale component. The remaining 1% of the company’s stake is owned by family offices.

Financial Performance and Future Goals

In terms of financial goals, More Retail is aiming for a positive EBITDA (Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation, and Amortization) in FY26 with a projected profit of ₹60 crore. This is a turnaround from an EBITDA loss of ₹65 crore in FY24, according to Ind AS accounting standards.

Recent Funding and Valuation Benchmarking

More Retail has recently raised ₹150 crore from family offices over the past 120 days. This capital was raised to help with the company’s valuation benchmarking, which is crucial as it prepares for its IPO.

Partnership with Amazon Fresh and Store Expansion

As part of its growth strategy, More Retail will continue its partnership with Amazon Fresh. Currently, 270 More Retail stores are already serving Amazon Fresh, and this number is set to increase to 370 stores by July 2025. By the end of the current fiscal year, the company aims to have 500-600 stores working with Amazon Fresh.

In terms of physical stores, More Retail plans to expand its offline and hybrid store count to over 1,100 by FY26. The company is also focusing on growing its ‘dark stores’—these are outlets that only serve online orders. The number of dark stores is expected to rise from the current 40 to 100 by FY26.