DMart founder Radhakishan Damani, SBI MF to invest Rs 100 crore each in Lenskart ahead of IPO: Report

Billionaire investor Radhakishan Damani, founder of Avenue Supermarts (DMart), and SBI Mutual Fund are each likely to invest about Rs 100 crore in eyewear retailer Lenskart ahead of its initial public offering (IPO), according to a Moneycontrol report.

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The report said that the investments will be made through a secondary share purchase ahead of Lenskart’s SEBI-cleared IPO, which includes a fresh issue of Rs 2,150 crore and an offer for sale of roughly 13.2 crore shares by existing shareholders.

For SBI Mutual Fund, this marks its second major bet on a new-age consumer internet company after Urban Company, while Damani’s participation adds one of India’s most respected value investors to Lenskart’s cap table ahead of its listing.

The move underscores rising institutional and high-net-worth investor interest in Lenskart, one of the few profitable internet-led consumer businesses preparing to go public.

Backed by SoftBank, Temasek, KKR, and Alpha Wave, Lenskart has recorded a sharp financial turnaround over the past year. The company posted a net profit of Rs 297 crore in FY25, compared to a loss of Rs 10 crore in FY24, while revenues rose 23% year-on-year to Rs 6,652 crore.

Proceeds from the fresh issue will be used to expand company-owned stores, upgrade technology systems, enhance brand marketing, and pursue potential acquisitions, according to the reports.

Lenskart currently operates more than 2,000 stores in India and around 650 outlets overseas, mainly across Southeast Asia and the Middle East. Its omnichannel model, combining offline retail with online convenience, has enabled it to dominate India’s organised eyewear segment, which remains underpenetrated.