- Synopsis
- Bluestone shares rebounded strongly after a tepid stock market debut, rising 7.3% to Rs 546. Early investors like Accel India and Saama Capital saw substantial gains, with promoter Gaurav Singh Kushwaha’s stake multiplying significantly. Despite widening losses in FY25 due to expansion costs, the company’s revenue grew by 40%, driven by strong institutional interest in its IPO.
Omnichannel jewellery retailerBluestone saw its shares rally to rise 7.3% to Rs 546 on the BSE on Tuesday following a muted debut on Indian stock exchanges.
Shares had opened at a 1.5% discount to the IPO price of Rs 517 on the BSE, while the NSE opening price was Rs 510. The company’s market capitalisation at the end of the day stood at Rs 8,262.09 crore.
Early investors in Bluestone posted substantial gains following the market debut. Accel India saw an 8.1 times investment multiple at IPO price of Rs 517, while Saama Capital’s investment jumped 10.6 times, and Kalaari Capital’s investment rose 8.4 times. Promoter and CEO Gaurav Singh Kushwaha’s stake multiplied 11.3 times. At Tuesday’s closing price, Kushwaha’s shares,
“When we started, the general disbelief people said was that how can anyone buy jewellery online? Jewellery requires a lot of trust and why would people buy from Bluestone? This is never going to work out. But we thought to ourselves, why does it have to be like that? Why can’t jewellery be reimagined, why can’t trust be built digitally and deepened physically,” Kushwaha said during his speech at the listing ceremony.
Bluestone’s Rs 1540 crore public issue, comprising a fresh issue of Rs 820 crore and the remainder through an offer for sale by existing investors drew strong interest from institutional investors, while retail participation remained moderate. The non-institutional portion was subscribed just 55%, bringing overall subscription to 2.7 times.
Despite revenue growth, Bluestone’s losses widened in FY25, driven by faster expense growth due to offline expansion and higher advertising spends. The company reported a net loss of Rs 222 crore in FY25, up from Rs 142 crore in FY24, while operating revenue rose 40% to Rs 1,770 crore. Expenses increased 42% to Rs 2,050 crore from Rs 1,445.7 crore in the previous year.
Bluestone had initially planned a Rs 1,000 crore fresh issue but later reduced it to Rs 820 crore. The offer for sale was also trimmed to 13.9 million shares from the original 24 million. Selling shareholders included Accel India, Kalaari Capital, Saama Capital, Iron Pillar Fund, and Hero Group’s Sunil Kant Munjal. IvyCap Ventures, which had earlier planned to sell 3.1 million shares, did not participate.
Of the Rs 820 crore fresh issue, Rs 750 crore has been earmarked for working capital requirements, with the remainder allocated to general corporate purposes.
“In the mid-2010s, India lacked true mid-stage capital for vertical commerce. BlueStone stayed frugal and focused, steadily broadening its catalogue, deepening manufacturing capabilities, and sharpening unit economics. The company moved through challenges with consistency, learning and building in every cycle. That discipline made today possible,” Prashanth Prakash, partner, Accel wrote in a blog post on Tuesday.
Source: economictimes.indiatimes.com