Navneet Publications eyeing stake buy in Gowtham School for close to Rs 60 crores

Navneet Publications is in advanced talks to buy about 25% stake in Hyderabad based school chain Gowtham School for close to Rs 60 crores sources with direct knowledge said. This will mark publishing company, Navneet Publications’ foray into the services side of the education sector.

This acquisition will give Navneet Publications a ready market for their publishing business and will give it an entry to the South Indian market where Gowtham has a strong presence with over 60 schools. Sequoia Capital India along with Song Investment Advisors together own close to 55% stake in K-12 Techno Services Pvt Ltd, a firm that manages Gowtham Model Schools.

Sunil Gala the Executive Director of Navneet Publications said, “We are in talks with Gowtham but all options are open at this point.” He also shared, “The education services side is expecting a growth of 18-20% and we want to take advantage of the opportunity.” Navneet has recently started e-learning which forms a very small part of the entire business of the company.