Lenskart to invest Rs100 crore to open 400 stores in two years

Ratan Tata-backed eyewear retailer Lenskart plans to invest over Rs100 crore on business expansion, including opening of 400 stores, in the next two years.

The company, which has a strong online presence, is eyeing a total of 700 stores by March 2019 by targeting small towns, tier II and III cities.

“As of now we have 300 stores across India and in the next two years we plan to open another 400 stores,” Lenskart chief executive officer Peyush Bansal told PTI. The current Lenskart stores in over 80 cities are based on franchise model, he added.

When asked about investment for the expansion, Bansal said the company will be putting in capital primarily around building back-end supply chain, while franchises would invest in opening stores. “For us the total investment would run to around Rs100 crore primarily to build supply chain, to be able to service all our stores and also train staff,” he added.

Elaborating on the company’s expansion strategy, Bansal said it so far has received good response from the tier I cities and was looking to expand its footprints in small towns.

“We have started entering some of these small cities. We have opened a store in Lucknow, one will soon be opened in Bareily,” Bansal said.

On expenditure on brand marketing and advertising, Bansal said: “We would be spending close to Rs140 crore in brand marketing and advertising over the next two years, apart from the back-end expenditure,” he added.

Lenskart has raised over Rs700 crore from investors, including Ratan Tata, IFC (venture capital arm of the World Bank) and Kris Gopalakrishnan (Infosys co-founder), among others.

In September last year, the company had raised an undisclosed amount from Premji Invest—the investment office of Wipro chief Azim Premji.