Capvent AG, the Zurich-headquartered fund of funds, has acquired 51 per cent stake in Chennai-based water treatment and purification firm Morf India Ltd for an undisclosed amount, according to a company statement.
VCCircle was the first to report that Capvent struck a deal to pick up majority stake in Morf India.
Morf India will use the money to develop new and innovative products, and run brand campaigns. Part of the money will be also used for its national expansion plans, to be implemented by this year-end.
“Today we are at an inflection point and, therefore, this investment, at this juncture, is very important to execute our growth strategies,†said MV Praveen, managing director of Morf India.
According to him, the firm has already started rolling out a multi-tier business network (MTBN) across the country that will bring sufficient resilience to Morf’s operations. “New product development and sustained brand campaigns will be our core focus for the next one year,†added Praveen.
Capvent Asia Consumption Fund is a $150 million fund that invests directly in Asia’s emerging private companies focused on consumer-oriented sectors. Capvent made other direct investments in the past including Dee Development Engineers, which designs & manufacturers prefabricated piping systems & fittings, and private sector lender Ratnakar Bank.
Morf India was founded in 1998 by MV Praveen and R Keannan. The Chennai-based firm has a deal with Electrolux under which Morf will sell the Kelvinator range of water purifiers and air purifiers in India and Sri Lanka. Morf inked a five-year agreement with Electrolux last year under which it would pay royalty and bear the marketing expenditure. Besides Chennai, the company has offices in Bangalore and Hyderabad, and is expecting to open another office in Cochin. According to its website, Morf India has 100 employees across its locations.
(Edited by Sanghamitra Mandal)
