If you study India’s biggest value-creation stories over the past decade, one trend becomes clear:
The real money was made before the IPO bell rang.
Among global private equity firms operating in India, TPG Capital stands out for its ability to identify scalable businesses early, invest with discipline, and exit with conviction at the moment of peak visibility.
The data below highlights TPG’s standout pre-IPO investments across beauty, footwear, auto retail, consumer electronics, NBFCs, and healthcare, and the returns they generated.
About TPG Capital India
TPG Capital India is one of the country’s most influential global private equity investors, known for backing high-growth consumer and financial services companies early and exiting with precision. With a disciplined investment approach and a strong focus on scalable businesses, TPG has created some of India’s most notable pre-IPO value-creation stories across beauty, retail, healthcare, NBFCs, and electronics. It remains a key player shaping India’s modern consumption and financial landscape.
TPG Capital’s Pre-IPO Portfolio: The Big Table
TPG Capital India – Company-Wise Investment & Exit Summary
| Company Name | Trade Name | IPO Date | First Invested Date | Total Invested Amount (₹ Cr) | Total Exit Amount (₹ Cr) | IPO Return Multiple |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FSN E-Commerce | Nykaa | 08 Nov 2021 | 28 Mar 2019 | 191.38 | 609.92 | 9.56x |
| Shriram Properties | Shriram Properties | 10 Dec 2021 | 30 Apr 2011 | 325.00 | 92.21 | 0.89x |
| Campus Activewear | Campus Shoes | 28 Apr 2022 | 01 Sep 2017 | 292.39 | 849.72 | 5.22x |
| Five-Star Business Finance | Five Star | 21 Nov 2022 | 03 Aug 2018 | 1,199.55 | 567.58 | 2.48x |
| Landmark Cars | Landmark Cars | 15 Dec 2022 | 17 Dec 2014 | 64.54 | 325.00 | 8.53x |
| RR Kabel | RR Kabel | 15 Sep 2023 | 06 Sep 2018 | 615.00 | 1,810.34 | 3.89x |
| Jana Small Finance Bank | Jana Small Finance | 09 Feb 2024 | 10 Nov 2014 | 1,211.63 | 588.29 | 0.78x |
| Brainbees Solutions | FirstCry | 10 Aug 2024 | 25 Apr 2022 | 675.00 | 181.33 | 1.66x |
| Sai Life Sciences | Sai Life | 13 Dec 2024 | 25 Jul 2018 | 969.80 | 1,461.66 | 4.43x |
| Dr. Agarwal’s Healthcare | DrAgarwals | 01 Feb 2025 | 05 May 2022 | 1,225.40 | 1,236.37 | 3.41x |
What the Numbers Reveal
1️⃣ Distinct Pattern: Enter Early, Exit Big
Across sectors, beauty, footwear, electronics, healthcare, NBFCs, TPG has shown a knack for investing 3–10 years before IPO.
This long runway allows three advantages:
- Value creation
- Operational upgrades in governance, tech, and compliance
- Clear exit visibility once companies hit growth scale
Nykaa, Campus Shoes, Landmark Cars, and RR Kabel all follow this template.
2️⃣ High-Multiple Exits: The Real Signature Move
When you look at the exit outcomes, a pattern emerges:
- Consumer businesses like Nykaa and Campus Shoes delivered the strongest returns.
- Brands with strong retail distribution and high customer pull tend to give 5–10x returns.
- Industrial and financial companies provide steadier but lower exit multiples.
TPG has consistently made its highest returns in consumer-first businesses.
3️⃣ RR Kabel & Sai Life: The Silent Value Machines
While Nykaa grabs headlines, RR Kabel and Sai Life Sciences are the quiet outperformers.
RR Kabel, for example, is a classic industrial-growth story, not flashy, not consumer-facing, but structurally strong. TPG’s ability to identify “boring but big” sectors is a competitive edge.
The same goes for Sai Life Sciences, where pharma services scale steadily and sustainably.
These investments highlight that TPG does not chase hype, it chases predictable compounding.
4️⃣ A Panoramic Sector Spread – But With a Bias
Across all investments listed, one consistent theme emerges:
TPG heavily backs businesses that dominate operationally complex categories:
- Footwear manufacturing
- Beauty & fashion marketplaces
- Auto retail
- Electrical cables & infrastructure
- NBFCs
- Pharma CRAMS
- Mother & baby retail
These are sectors where deep execution matters more than aggressive cash burn, areas where private equity expertise can materially improve outcomes.
5️⃣ IPO Timing: Perfectly Staggered
The IPO dates stretch from 2021 to 2025, meaning TPG has been engineering exits even in volatile markets.
This staggered timing shows:
- Strong discipline in portfolio pacing
- A structured PE approach to liquidity cycles
- Confidence in backing companies through regulatory and economic cycles
Not every investor gets timing right, TPG consistently has.
6️⃣ What This Says About TPG Capital India’s Strategy
When you put it all together, the data reveals a very clear playbook:
TPG Invests In:
- Scaled but under-optimized businesses
- Sectors with long-term India demand fundamentals
- Companies where operational excellence drives valuation
TPG Exits When:
- Governance is tight
- Leadership is stable
- Revenue has hit “public market scale”
- The company can narrate a clear growth story to retail and institutional investors
This is true across Nykaa, Campus Shoes, Landmark Cars, RR Kabel, and more.
Final Takeaway: A Masterclass in Pre-IPO Investing
Pre-IPO investing is where the smartest money plays, and TPG Capital’s India portfolio is a case study in getting it right.
Whether it’s beauty, wires & cables, footwear, auto retail, or pharma, the story is the same:
Enter at the right time.
Build deep value.
Exit with conviction.
Very few investors have been as consistent.
More deep-dives into India’s smartest pre-IPO investors are coming your way. Follow PrivateCircle for the next breakdown.