If there is truth to the reports making rounds, British kids product brand Mothercare will become the latest to join the bandwagon with Mango, Forever 21 and Sephora among other global labels to shift hands from DLF Brands in the Indian retail market.
FirstCry.com is in talks to buy the India franchise rights for Mothercare from DLF Brands with a purpose to mark its presence in the growing kids product market. The English multinational specialises in products for expectant mothers and children up to 6 years old.
FirstCry.com, which started as an online player, later acquired offline retailer Mahindra’s BabyOye in 2016 for Rs. 362.1 crore in a primarily stock deal, signalling its focus on building an offline presence. It is known for having more than 2 lakh baby and kids items from over 2,000 top international and Indian brands.
According to reports, people aware of the development have claimed that such talks have been underway between the two for quite some time now. Reports also claimed that once the deal gets in place, DLF Brands will be given a stake in FirstCry as part of the arrangement.
However, DLF Brands and Mothercare both have refuted the media claims about reported deal with FirstCry.com. It remains to be seen how things unfold in the future.