Brands
HY-2016: Adlabs footfalls doubles; EBIDTA more than quadruples
BENGALURU: Adlabs Entertainment Limited (Adlabs) reported almost double (increased by 98.2 per cent) the footfalls at its two theme parks Adlabs Imagica and Adlabs Aquamagica-Water Park for the half-year ended 30 September, 2015 (HY-2016, current half-year) at 7.87 lakh as compared to 3.97 lakh in the corresponding year ago half-year.
Footfalls in the quarter ended 30 September, 2015 (Q2-2016, current quarter) increased 14.8 per cent YoY to 2.48 lakh from 21.6 lakh in Q2-2015, but were more than half (declined 54 per cent) from the 5.39 lakh in the immediate trailing quarter. The company says numbers have been affected due to the closures of the Mumbai-Pune Expressway because of landslides in August and September 2015.
Note: (1) 100,00,000 = 100 lakh = 10 million = 1 crore
(2) All numbers in this report are standalone unless stated otherwise
Buoyed by the numbers reported during Q1-2016 (quarter ended 30 June, 2016, immediate trailing quarter, previous quarter) or the school and college holiday season, Earnings before interest, depreciation and amortisation and taxes (EBIDTA) more than quadrupled (4.28 times) in HY-2016 to Rs 18.48 crore (15.1 per cent margin) as compared to the Rs 4.31 crore (six per cent margin) in HY-2015. EBIDTA in Q2-2016 was negative Rs 6.26 crore as compared to the Rs 3.54 crore (9.9 per cent margin) in Q2-2015 and the Rs 24.73 crore (29.1 per cent margin) in Q1-2015.
Adlabs CEO Kapil Bagla said, “The highlight of Q2-2016 was the launch of our Hotel Novotel Imagica with 116 rooms. The hotel has got off to a great start with an average occupancy rate of 77 per cent and a huge pent up demand for this product. We see a healthy mix of corporate and leisure customers at our property and the feedback from customers who have stayed at the Novotel has been very encouraging.”
“We were impacted by the disruption and closure of Mumbai-Pune Expressway due to recurring landslides in the months of August and September. The Expressway is our primary connectivity to the Park. The historical trend is that we achieve 60-62 per cent of our annual footfalls in the second half, so we feel; that Q3 and Q4 will be extremely good quarters for us,” added Bagla.
Let us look at the other numbers reported by Adlabs:
Adlabs revenue in HY-2016 increased 69.6 per cent to Rs 122.22 crore as compared to the Rs 72.07 crore in the corresponding half-year of last year. For Q2-2016, the company reported 4.2 per cent YoY growth in revenue to Rs 37.21 crore as compared to the Rs 35.71 crore in Q2-2015, but a 56.2 per cent decline from the Rs 85.01 crore in the immediate trailing quarter.
Total Expenditure (TE) in HY-2016 increased 38.4 per cent to Rs 146.03 crore (119.5 per cent of TIO) as compared to the Rs 105.53 crore (146.4 per cent of TIO) in HY-2015. TE in Q2-2015 increased 28.5 per cent YoY to Rs 64.99 crore (174.7 per cent of TIO) from Rs 50.56 crore (141.6 per cent of TIO), but declined 19.8 per cent QoQ from Rs 81.05 crore (953 per cent of TIO).
A major expense head for Adlabs is Employee Benefits Expense (EBE). EBE in HY-2016 increased 48 per cent to Rs 30.32 crore (24.8 per cent of TIO) as compared to the Rs 20.49 crore (28.4 per cent of TIO) in HY-2015. EBE in Q2-2016 increased 56.9 per cent YoY to Rs 14.85 crore (39.9 per cent of TIO) from Rs 9.46 crore (26.5 per cent of TIO) in Q2-2015, but declined four per cent QoQ from Rs 15.47 crore (18.2 per cent of TIO).
Adlabs loss in HY-2016 reduced to Rs 49.45 crore as compared to the Rs 53.61 crore in the corresponding year ago period. Loss in the current quarter however, was higher at Rs 34.73 crore than the loss of Rs 24.94 crore in Q2-2015 and the loss of Rs 14.81 crore in the immediate trailing quarter.
Brands
Dabur buys minority stake in Ras Beauty for Rs 60 crore
Dabur Ventures deal backs fast-growing luxury skincare brand
MUMBAI: Dabur India Limited has dipped into the world of luxury skincare, signing a definitive agreement to acquire a minority stake in Ras Beauty Private Limited for Rs 60 crore. The investment marks the first bet from Dabur Ventures, the FMCG major’s Rs 500 crore platform set up in October 2025 to back high-potential, new-age direct-to-consumer brands.
Founded in Raipur by Shubhika Jain, her sister Suramya Jain and their mother Sangeeta Jain, Ras Beauty has grown from a family-led passion project into a fast-scaling “Farm-to-Face” skincare label. Its range of face elixirs, serums and moisturisers blends essential oils with nature-derived actives, striking a balance between botanical purity and laboratory precision.
The numbers tell their own story. Ras has clocked a three-year Cagr of around 75 per cent and an annual run rate of approximately Rs 100 crore, all while maintaining strong gross margins. That growth has been fuelled by a digital-first approach, in-house R&D and manufacturing, and a sharp focus on clean, sustainable sourcing.
Dabur India executive director and group head corporate strategy Abhinav Dhall, said the company was drawn to Ras’s distinct positioning at the intersection of nature, science and luxury. He added that the premium beauty segment is poised for robust expansion over the coming decade, and that Ras is well placed to capture that opportunity.
For Ras, the partnership is as much about scale as it is about shared philosophy. Co-founder and CEO Shubhika Jain said Dabur’s 141-year legacy of building trusted, purpose-led brands makes it a natural ally. The capital infusion, she noted, will help accelerate the brand’s omnichannel footprint, deepen research capabilities and invest in team and brand building, with an eye on establishing Ras as a leading Indian luxury skincare name both domestically and overseas.
With this move, Dabur is not just investing in a skincare label. It is placing an early wager on India’s growing appetite for premium, conscious beauty, and signalling that heritage FMCG players are ready to play in the new-age D2C arena.
