Kalpathi Group-owned Veranda Learning Solutions acquires Chennai Race for Rs 100 crore

Kalpathi Group-owned, ed-tech venture Veranda Learning Solutions on Monday announced the acquisition of Chennai Race, a coaching institute for banking, SSC and PSC exams. The transaction, valued at over Rs 100 crore that includes stock and earn out, now leads to the launch of a new brand, called Veranda Race. Veranda Race will initially offer result oriented online training programs for banking, SSC and TNPSC. By December 2021 Veranda Race is planning to launch course content in 11 Indian languages.

During the financial year 2019-20, Chennai Race recorded sales of about Rs 45 crore and has trained over 2 lakh students so far across the states of Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka and Punjab.

Suresh Kalpathi, CEO, Veranda Learning Solution, said: “We expect Veranda Race to grow significantly in the coming months and years with addition of more products and languages. Race is a great brand to bring under our newly launched venture, as it opens new possibilities in the core areas of our business. The acquisition of Race will bolster our offerings and will further define our position in the sector.”

Chennai-based Kalpathi Group had last week announced the launch of its new ed-tech venture Veranda Learning Solution, a 360-degree online education platform.

Being built with an initial investment of Rs 50 crore, Veranda has lined up plans to expand its portfolio through organic development and acquisitions. The firm is targeting an annual recurring revenue (ARR) of Rs 100 crore, in the first full year of operations and Rs 1,000 crore ARR in 3 years. Kalpathi Group has owned and managed various businesses over the past 25 years which include, education, software services, property development, finance and entertainment.

Bharath Seeman, promotor of Chennai Race & head of Veranda Race, said: “The Veranda Race programme are set for rollout nationally, in the coming months, targeting a revenue of Rs 50 crore in the first year. By the end of 2021, our content will be available in 11 Indian languages and we would be training around 50,000 to 60,000 students across the country. We have priced our courses around Rs 7500 which includes course materials and mentoring support.”