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Tag: BrainBees Solution Ltd

  • Brainbees Solutions, the Parent Company of FirstCry, has Finished its GST Inspection

    Brainbees Solutions Limited, the parent company of the well-known e-commerce platform FirstCry, announced on November 10, 2024, that a GST department inspection that started on November 6 had completed.

     The business said in a report to the stock exchanges that it answered all of the questions posed and cooperated completely with the authorities. According to Brainbees, inconsistencies in previous fiscal years’ GST forms resulted in a payment of INR 1.74 crore, including interest.

    Discrepancies Between GSTR-3B and GSTR-2A GST Return

    The Assistant Commissioner of State Tax, Mumbai, Investigation-C, oversaw the four-day GST inspection, which started on November 6 and ended on November 10, 2024. It concentrated on claimed discrepancies between GSTR-3B and GSTR-2A GST return files for the fiscal years 2018–19, 2019–20, 2020–21, and 2022–23.

    The GST implications of FirstCry‘s IPO-related expenses were also carefully examined throughout the inspection, with particular attention paid to how costs incurred during the issue of additional shares were handled. The business insisted that all problems were completely fixed and said it gave sufficient justifications to allay these worries.

    Reassurance of Uninterrupted Operations and Collaboration

    During the inspection, Brainbees reinforced that it complied with all information requests and underlined its complete cooperation with GST inspectors. Aside from the settlement’s financial impact, the corporation reassured stakeholders that the inspection had no negative effects on its business operations.

    According to Brainbees’ official statement, “This has not impacted the operations of the company, which are continuing as usual.” The Pune-based business is the top retailer of children’s products in India, offering a large selection of goods for parents and kids up to 12 years old both online and in-store.

    The company’s official filing contained all information required by SEBI (Listing Obligations and Disclosure Requirements) Regulations, 2015, in compliance with SEBI’s directive. According to the compliance statement, Brainbees promised to swiftly notify the exchanges of any new material developments pertaining to the GST probe.

    The top children’s goods retailer in India, FirstCry, is run by Brainbees Solutions Limited, which has its registered office in Pune. The company is constantly growing its market share both online and in-store.

    About Brainbees Solutions

    In accordance with a certificate of incorporation given by the RoC, the firm was founded on May 17, 2010, as a private limited company under the Companies Act 1956, in Pune under the name “Brainbees Solutions Private Limited.” Following a resolution by the company’s board on August 31, 2023, and a resolution by its shareholders at the general meeting on September 5, 2023, the company was converted to a public limited company, and its name was changed to ‘Brainbees Solutions Limited’. Following its business’ conversion to a public limited company, the RoC issued a new certificate of incorporation on November 2, 2023.

    Supam Maheshwari – CEO & Co-Founder of First Cry
    Supam Maheshwari is co-founder & CEO of FirstCry. He also founded Babyhug-owned brand BrainBees & Xpressbees. Know more about Firstcry founder.
    StartupTalkyMegha Rani

  • Show-Cause Notices Issued to Firstcry Over Esop Expenditures Totalling INR 80 Crore

    Show-cause notices have been issued to Brainbees Solutions, the parent company of FirstCry, in relation to employee stock ownership plan (ESOP) expenses that were close to INR 80 crore and were incurred during the fiscal years 2018-19 and 2021-22.

    The notices have been sent by the Income Tax Department in accordance with clause (b) of Section 148A of the Income Tax Act.

    Firstcry in Its Defence

    According to the filing that the company made with the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE), the company is determined in its belief that the claim of ESOP expenses that it has made in its tax returns for the assessment years mentioned above is in compliance with the provisions of the Income Tax Act of 1961 and is in accordance with judicial precedents established by a variety of courts as well as the advice of our external tax advisors.

    A comparable employee stock ownership plan (ESOP) expenditure claim was previously allowed by the Commissioner of Income Tax (Appeals) for the assessment year 2015-16, according to the company to which SoftBank provided financial backing. Consequently, the organisation is of the opinion that “no income that is subject to tax has evaded the assessment.”

    As was stated earlier, the corporation is of the opinion that it has a solid case on merit, and at this point, there has been no order of any type having been passed. According to the filings, the corporation will, in due course, provide a response that is suitable to the show cause notices.

    Not the First Time for the FirstCry

    In 2023, it has been reported that the tax department, which is under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Finance in India, has sent notices to the creator of FirstCry, Supam Maheshwari, requesting him to explain why he did not pay more than $50 million in taxes on equity transactions that were carried out in privately held FirstCry. The tax department has requested that they not be named because the information is not publicly available.

    In addition, queries concerning the problem have been received by at least six investors in FirstCry, according to the statement. These investors include the private equity firm ChrysCapital Management Co. and the family office of Sunil Bharti Mittal. In order to resolve the investigation, Maheshwari had several meetings with the tax agency.

    The financial year that ended on March 31, 2021 was the first time that FirstCry had generated a profit after years of operating at a loss.

    FirstCry’s IPO

    An initial public offering (IPO) of $500 million was submitted by FirstCry earlier this year. The IPO featured a fresh issue of INR 1,666 crore as well as an offer for sale of 543 lakh equity shares by existing shareholders. FirstCry is a company that offers a wide variety of products meant for infants and toddlers.

    The omnichannel retailer finished the first day of trading on the Indian stock markets with a market value of $4.1 billion, an increase of 44.8% from the previous day’s trade.

    Details of the FirstCry IPO That Opens on August 6
    FirstCry’s parent company, BrainBees Solutions Ltd, has announced that its red herring prospectus (RHP) indicates that the IPO would begin on August 6 and conclude on August 8.
    StartupTalkyNitin Konde

  • FirstCry Shares Debut Impressively at INR 651 per Share on NSE, With a 40% Premium

    Brainbees Solutions Ltd, the multi-channel retail platform that runs the ‘FirstCry’ brand, had a successful initial public offering (IPO) on Tuesday. The NSE listed price of a FirstCry share was INR 651, which was 40% more than the issue price of INR 465.00 per share.

    Shares of FirstCry were launched on BSE at INR 625 each, representing a premium of 34.41%.

    The market anticipated FirstCry’s IPO listing on Tuesday. Grey market indicators pointed to a successful launch of Brainbees Solutions shares prior to the listing. The grey market premium, or FirstCry IPO GMP, on August 13, 2024, was INR 80, which, according to stock market observers, was approximately 17% higher than the upper price range of FirstCry IPO.

    IPO’s Particulars

    Brainbees Solutions’ initial public offering (IPO) was offered for subscription to the general public from August 6 to August 8. August 13, was the first day of the FirstCry IPO, which had its allotment determined on August 9.

    The company raised INR 4,193.73 crore at the upper end of the price band for its first public offering (IPO), which was set at INR 440 to 465 per share. A total of 3,58 crore equity shares, with a face value of 1,666 crore INR, and 5.44 crore shares, with an OFS component, totalling 2,527.73 crore INR, made up the book-built issue.

    According to subscription data on NSE, the FirstCry IPO was oversubscribed by 12.22 times, with bids for 60.64 crore equity shares compared to 4.96 crore shares on offer.

    A total of 2.31 retail bookings, 19.30 QIB bookings, and 4.68 NII bookings were recorded for the initial public offering.

    Company’s Future Plans

    Among the many planned uses for the IPO money are the opening of additional “BabyHug” and “FirstCry” retail locations, growth into new global markets, investments in data science and technology, and other business expansion projects.

    The major book-runners for the FirstCry IPO are Kotak Mahindra Capital Company Ltd, Avendus Capital Pvt Ltd, JM Financial Ltd, Bofa Securities India Ltd, and Morgan Stanley India Company Pvt Ltd. The issue is being registered by Link Intime India Pvt Ltd.

    With its FirstCry brand, Brainbees Solutions Ltd has become the leading multi-channel retailer in India for products for moms, infants, and children. The company has established itself as a frontrunner in the specialised but fast-expanding sector because of its extensive product line and robust online and offline presence.

    In addition to India, FirstCry is increasing its presence in certain other foreign countries. Financially, Brainbees Solutions was all over the place in FY24, despite the company’s dominant market position. Net sales for the quarter came to INR 6,480.9 crore, and the company’s EBITDA was INR 70.5 crore.

    Supam Maheshwari – CEO & Co-Founder of First Cry
    Supam Maheshwari is co-founder & CEO of FirstCry. He also founded Babyhug-owned brand BrainBees & Xpressbees. Know more about Firstcry founder.
    StartupTalkyMegha Rani

  • Details of the FirstCry IPO That Opens on August 6

    FirstCry’s parent company, BrainBees Solutions Ltd, has announced that its red herring prospectus (RHP) indicates that the IPO would begin on August 6 and conclude on August 8.

    FirstCry reportedly plans to ask for a valuation between $2.9 and $3 billion when it goes public. Among the components of FirstCry’s IPO revealed in its revised DRHP was an offer for sale (OFS) of up to 54,391,592 equity shares and a new issue of equity shares totaling up to INR 1,666 crore.

    Since FirstCry’s total sales were more than INR 6,500 crore in FY24, the numbers suggest that the company will seek valuation multiples of roughly 3.5x revenue. Although many were disappointed by its value, experts believe that a lower valuation would be a smart move that would appeal to institutional and retail investors alike.

    Annual Financial Report (FY24)

    From INR 5,633 crore in FY23 to INR 6,481 crore in FY24, FirstCry’s revenue from operations increased by 15%. In the most recent fiscal year, FirstCry mostly generated income from the sale of its items through its online store and brick-and-mortar locations. The company’s wholly-owned subsidiary, GlobalBees, was a major revenue generator, adding INR 1,209 crore.

    According to the company’s DRHP, there were 1,018 brick-and-mortar outlets nationwide as of the end of the last calendar year (2023). Of these, 632 were franchise-owned, while the remaining 832 were company-owned.

    Thanks to a better EBITDA margin, the Pune-based company was able to cut its losses in FY24 by 34%, to INR 321 crore.

    Around the first week of August, FirstCry will join Ola Electric as the second SoftBank-backed business to conduct an initial public offering (IPO). The firm, which is headed by Bhavish Aggarwal, had scheduled the opening of the issue for August 2 and its closing for August 6.

    So, Who’s Selling in the Initial Public Offering?

    SoftBank will sell 37.35 percent of the 5,43,91,592 shares that make up FirstCry’s offers for sale (OFS). A number of other investors will also be participating in the OFS, including Mahindra and Mahindra, Premji Invest, TPG Growth, and NewQuest Asia. The firm will probably finalize the price range by today.

    Mahindra & Mahindra and Premji Invest are the next two largest shareholders in FirstCry, with 10.97% and 10.36% of the company’s shares, respectively. SoftBank is the largest shareholder in FirstCry, holding 25.53% of ownership. Even though the total ESOP pool accounts for 8.4% of the cap table, the creator of the company, Supam Maheshwari, holds a 6% share.

    FirstCry Parent Brainbees to Raise Rs 1816 Crore in IPO
    Brainbees Solutions, the parent company of FirstCry, has submitted its draft red herring prospectus (DRHP) with plans to raise ₹1,816 crore.
    StartupTalkyNadeesh Kareemdathil