Navneet eyes stationery firms

Notebooks maker Navneet Publication today said it is open to acquiring companies in the stationery space as growing organically does not fit into the company's agenda.

"We are not ruling out the possibility of any domestic acquisition, but no overseas acquisition is in our mind at the moment," company's Vice-President Shailendra Gala said here.

Broadly into children's book publishing and stationery businesses, Navneet Publication, recorded a Rs 326-crore revenue last fiscal, of which Rs 32 crore came from exports.

Gala said Navneet would consider small and medium firms for acquisition, but did not give details, saying things are yet to be shaped up.

To put up a medium-sized plant for manufacturing finished paper products having a capacity of 25 tonnes per month, it requires around Rs 3-crore investment, excluding the cost of the land, Gala said.

Navneet had acquired the children's book publishing business of a Spanish firm in 2005.

Gala said this year, the company aims to increase book publishing business by 15 per cent from Rs 200 crore last year and stationery business by 32 per cent from Rs 85.55 crore.

The company exported stationery and books worth Rs 32.13 crore last year to Europe, West Asia, Africa and the US.

Navneet Publication has five manufacturing facilities in the country at Ahmedabad, Vasai, Silvassa, Daman and Santej with a combined capacity of 150 tonnes per month.

Gala said the company was not planning to go for any greenfield or brownfield expansions at the moment.

"We are in talks with some small players in the field to outsource our requirement since we are expanding our markets," he said, adding the company was developing new markets in the US and Europe. It recently ventured into Sri Lanka.

Navneet Publication has 25 branch offices across the country but none in the North-East, where according to Gala, logistics are a big problem.

It has a limited presence in West Bengal, which he described a 'difficult market' due to presence of so many players. In all, Navneet has its reach to 60,000 outlets across the country.

Navneet Publication had entered into the market in 1984 and then again in 1994 when it came out with a follow-on public offer. Promoters' stake in the company presently stands at 62 per cent.