Hela Apparel Holdings IPO opens today

Hela Apparel Holdings Group CEO Dilanka Jinadasa

The much-awaited IPO of Hela Apparel Holdings Ltd. (the holding company of the Hela Clothing Group) opens today, 12 January 2022. 

Aiming to raise Rs. 4 billion in equity capital through the issue of 267,108,998 ordinary voting shares at a price of Rs. 15 per share, Hela’s IPO is the largest by value in over a decade. Managed jointly by CT CLSA and CAL, the issue will see a 20% stake in the company offered to the public, giving Hela Apparel Holdings Ltd. an initial projected market capitalisation of  Rs. 19.5 billion. 

Hela Apparel Holdings Group CEO Dilanka Jinadasa said: “We are pleasantly surprised by the interest levels we experienced with our IPO. With our aim of always challenging the status quo, we are honoured to be pioneering the listing of an apparel entity on the Colombo Stock Exchange.

We look forward to welcoming all our new investors onboard and continuing this exciting journey together, upon the conclusion of our IPO.”

The proceeds of the IPO will go towards funding Hela’s ambitious plans for growth, focusing on leveraging technology and securing the company’s supply chain. Accordingly, Hela intends to channel Rs. 1 billion towards supply chain security through an investment in a fabric mill; Rs. 0.6 billion towards beefing up its core digital systems through the implementation of a comprehensive SAP ERP system; and Rs. 2 billion towards balance sheet strengthening by settling existing debt in order to support further borrowing and expansion overseas. Additionally, Rs. 0.4 billion has also been allocated towards automation to improve productivity.

Hela Clothing is a company built on a culture of speed, agility and strong customer relationships, providing responsive and dynamic end-to-end supply chain solutions to global apparel brands. The company is a leader in ethical and sustainable manufacturing, having received numerous global accolades in this regard and recently becoming a signatory to the UN Global Compact. Through its global expansion initiatives, the company has also emerged as a leader in Africa’s apparel revolution. 

Hela Clothing provides manufacturing solutions to some of the world’s top luxury apparel brands including Tommy Hilfiger, Calvin Klein, Michael Kors and VF Corp, through its 11 manufacturing facilities located in Sri Lanka, Kenya, and Ethiopia. As part of its global expansion strategy, Hela Clothing has also entered into partnerships with manufacturing facilities in Tanzania and is in the process of expanding its manufacturing footprint to Egypt.