Raymond Group Seeks to Nearly Double Real Estate Topline to Rs 4,000 Crore Over Next Five Years

Mumbai: The Raymond Group is targeting a nearly five-fold increase in its real estate company's top line from the current Rs 500 crore to a projected Rs 4,000 crore within the next five years. The group plans to achieve a top line growth of 15% and an Ebitda (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation) growth of 25% every year.

The real estate arm of the Raymond Group will be listed in just a month's time, marking an important milestone for the company. The group has already demerged its lifestyle business and is looking at significant growth potential in the Indian real estate market.

According to chairman and managing director Gautam Singhania, the company aims to capitalize on Mumbai's growing residential segment, with the city accounting for 28% of total residential sales in top-10 cities. Despite predictions of slower sales due to price rises, Singhania is bullish about growth prospects.

"We are bullish about sales," he said. "We want to be a strong company with good financial discipline."

The Raymond Realty company posted a profit before tax (PBT) of Rs 370 crore on revenue of Rs 2,313 crore in the previous fiscal year, with its top line growing by 45.2%. Singhania did not reveal any guidance on valuations for the real estate company but said that it would be discovered through "market discovery".

The group currently operates a debt-free real estate business but Singhania warned that this may not be sustainable in the long term. He stated, "'We want to be a strong company with good financial discipline.'"

Other prominent developers in Mumbai, such as Macrotech (Lodha) and Prestige Estates, are also expected to contribute significantly to the city's growing real estate market.

Mumbai has set its sights on expanding residential sales to 700,000 units per year. Raymond Group aims to benefit from this growth with significant development potential worth up to Rs 25,000 crore in its Thane land and Rs 14,000 crore in its joint development projects.

Within the next two years, joint development projects are expected to account for around 50% of the annual pre-sales figure.