Online retail giant Amazon has picked up a 26 per cent stake Trent Ltd’s publishing arm, Westland, for Rs 9.5 crore. Trent Ltd is a part of the Tata Group.
In a filing to the BSE, Trent Ltd stated: “Amazon holds 26 per cent of the Westland’s share capital on a fully diluted basis.”
Under the definitive agreements signed by Trent and Amazon.com and Westland, Amazon will have a right to appoint a director on the board of Westland and also have the option to acquire the remaining 74 per cent of shares at a later date.
In a statement, Westland said the investment by Amazon will enable it to expand its international reach and scale their physical and digital book businesses.
Amazon’s roots are in books and they remain a major part of their business.
With an estimated market segment of Rs 10,000 crore, India ranks seventh in overall global publishing and third after the US and the UK in English language publishing.
Westland is one of the largest and fastest-growing publishing houses in India. It is an amalgam of three specialist companies, and it has the expertise both in retailing and distribution of books, besides publishing quality literature.
After more than 50 years of experience in import and distribution of major academic and English language trade publications from all over the world, Westland’s focus has shifted to publishing in the last eight years. Today, Westland is the fifth largest English language trade publisher in India.
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