Venture capital firm Elevation Capital, which owns nearly 5% stake in the initial public offering (IPO)-bound mattress and furniture retailer Wakefit, acquired shares worth Rs 32.5 crore this year from the company’s current and former employees in the months leading up to the company filing its draft papers.
These 203,426 shares, which Elevation Capital bought at Rs 1,600 apiece, were allotted to Wakefit employees under the company’s 2019 employee stock option plan (Esop), according to its draft prospectus filed on Friday. Under the Esop 2019 programme, Wakefit had granted a total of 8.4 million stock options, of which 4.5 million vested to date, and 413,271 have been exercised, it said in the prospectus.
Wakefit filed its draft red herring prospectus (DRHP) on Friday for the IPO through which it will raise Rs 468 crore in fresh capital. The IPO also comprises an offer-for-sale (OFS) component that will see 58.4 million shares being sold by investors.
Notably, Elevation Capital is not participating in the OFS component.
Wakefit had facilitated an Esop buyback of Rs 15 crore in 2021 as well, which had benefitted 15-20 employees at the time. Esop buyback programmes typically result in companies facilitating secondary purchases of vested stock options by external investors. In some cases, the companies buy these securities back from their employees.
On June 24, software-as-a-service (SaaS) firm Darwinbox bought back Rs 86 crore worth of shares from its employees. Over the last year, several other new-age companies, including IPO-bound at-home services platform Urban Company, society management app Mygate, ecommerce firm Meesho, edtech startups Classplus and Adda247, and managed healthcare provider Even Healthcare, have concluded Esop buybacks.
Elevation Capital did not respond to queries sent by ET. Wakefit founder Chaitanya Ramalingegowda said in response to a text message, “We will be unable to comment on the same.”
Wakefit, founded in 2016 by Ankit Garg and Ramalingegowda, initially focussed on sleep products such as mattresses, pillows, and bed frames. Over time, it has expanded its portfolio to include a wide range of home products, including sofas, dining sets, wardrobes, study tables, and bookshelves.
These 203,426 shares, which Elevation Capital bought at Rs 1,600 apiece, were allotted to Wakefit employees under the company’s 2019 employee stock option plan (Esop), according to its draft prospectus filed on Friday. Under the Esop 2019 programme, Wakefit had granted a total of 8.4 million stock options, of which 4.5 million vested to date, and 413,271 have been exercised, it said in the prospectus.
Wakefit filed its draft red herring prospectus (DRHP) on Friday for the IPO through which it will raise Rs 468 crore in fresh capital. The IPO also comprises an offer-for-sale (OFS) component that will see 58.4 million shares being sold by investors.
Notably, Elevation Capital is not participating in the OFS component.
Wakefit had facilitated an Esop buyback of Rs 15 crore in 2021 as well, which had benefitted 15-20 employees at the time. Esop buyback programmes typically result in companies facilitating secondary purchases of vested stock options by external investors. In some cases, the companies buy these securities back from their employees.
On June 24, software-as-a-service (SaaS) firm Darwinbox bought back Rs 86 crore worth of shares from its employees. Over the last year, several other new-age companies, including IPO-bound at-home services platform Urban Company, society management app Mygate, ecommerce firm Meesho, edtech startups Classplus and Adda247, and managed healthcare provider Even Healthcare, have concluded Esop buybacks.
Elevation Capital did not respond to queries sent by ET. Wakefit founder Chaitanya Ramalingegowda said in response to a text message, “We will be unable to comment on the same.”
Wakefit, founded in 2016 by Ankit Garg and Ramalingegowda, initially focussed on sleep products such as mattresses, pillows, and bed frames. Over time, it has expanded its portfolio to include a wide range of home products, including sofas, dining sets, wardrobes, study tables, and bookshelves.
