ITC to raise its stake in Mother Sparsh to 49%​

In line with ‘ITC next’ strategy articulated by Sanjiv Puri, Chairman, ITC Ltd., the company is focussed on building a future-ready suite of products that serve evolving consumers.

After acquiring a 26.5% stake in 2021 in ‘Mother Sparsh’, a baby care brand that offers a bouquet of natural and ayurvedic products, ITC Ltd has informed that it indents to acquire 100% in the brand by 2027.

Currently, the company will invest INR 81 Cr (USD 1 Mn) to take its stake in the brand to 49%.

Himanshu Gandhi, Founder & CEO, Mother Sparsh said, “We are delighted that ITC has found value in Mother Sparsh, coming forward as an early investor, well poised to leverage the growth potential in the baby care space.

We have built Mother Sparsh with a lot of love, passion and innovation, and we are happy to have found a home for it in a place where it will thrive.

ITC is the largest incubator of FMCG brands in India and knows how to build and scale brands. We are confident that ITC will take Mother Sparsh to the next level and help serve the needs of mothers for generations to come.”

Sameer Satpathy, the Divisional Chief Executive of Personal Care Products Business Division at ITC, said, “This acquisition is an exciting opportunity, aligned with our aspiration to build a formidable portfolio of future ready, best-in-class innovative offerings that delights Indian consumers.

Mother Sparsh in a true spirit of entrepreneurship, has created a reputed brand with Indian ethos in the natural baby care space, powered by an assortment of innovative products and a robust digital eco-system.”

The range of offerings from’Mother Sparsh’ straddles baby personal care, baby health and hygiene and baby expert products. The company has adopted a digital first strategy with a robust presence across online channels as well as specialty shops selling baby care products.

Editor’s Note

Large conglomerates are rather investing on start-ups which are specialised in specific verticals, rather than investing in their own R&D for such categories.

Earlier this month, Hindustan Unilever had invested INR 3,000 Cr in personal care brand ‘Minimalist’.

ITC has also invested on several other smaller companies, most recently acquiring organic foods company ‘24 Mantra’.