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EBGNG · GNG Electronics Limited
577.10 INR +5.20 (+0.91%) At close · Nov 13
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Earnings call · FY2027 Q1

GNG Electronics Limited (EBGNG) Q1 2027 Earnings Call Transcript

Concluded Jul 30, 2026 Audio replay
Jul 30, 2026 55:21 94 turns
Period
FY2027 Q1
Runtime
55:21
Sources
3 artifacts
Revenue 4.12B INR +32.1% YoY
Diluted EPS 2.54 INR/shares +25.1% YoY
Net income 0 INR -100% YoY
Open full screen Slides 8

Transcript & audio

55:21 Audio
Operator

Good evening, everyone, and welcome to the Q1-FI20 Servings Earnings Call for G&G Electronics Limited. We will begin the call with the opening remarks from the management, after which we will have the forum opening for the interactive Q&A session. I must remind you that this conference call may include forward-looking statements about the company, which are based on the beliefs, opinions, and expectations of the company as on date of this call. The statements are not guaranteed for the future performance and involve risk and authorities that are difficult to predict. I now hand over the conference to Mr. Avinash Garumanji from Motilal Oswal for the introduction. Thank you and over to you, sir.

Avinash Karumanji Analyst — Motilal Oswal

Thank you, team. Good evening, everyone. On behalf of Motilal Oswal Financial Services, I welcome you to the first quarter FI27 and next call of G&G Electronics Limited. Joining us on the call today are Mr. Sharad Gandelwal, Founder and Managing Director, Mr. Ajay Panchvalli, Director, Mr. Rakesh Injunwala, CFO, and Mr. Rohit Agarwal, Strategy and IR. Now I hand out the call to Sharad Chief for his opening remarks. Thank you and over to you sir.

Good evening, and thank you, everyone. I welcome you all to the Q1 F527 earnings call of G&G Electronics Limited. Before I begin, let me say that today marks a special milestone for all of us. Exactly one year ago, today, G&G Electronics began its journey as a publicly listed company. It has been an extraordinary year, and I want to sincerely thank our shareholders, investors, colleagues. Customers and partners for believing in our vision. Trust is never given permanently. It must be run every single day. That's a responsibility we take very seriously. The world has changed remarkably over the last few years. In technology, change has never waited for anyone. But every so often, there comes a moment when the changes are not temporary, they are structural, they reshape industries, they redefine markets, and they create opportunities for those prepared to see them. I believe we are living through one of those moments today. Artificial intelligence is transforming computing, supply chains are being reshaped, the economics of owning a computer are changing rapidly. Around the world, businesses, students, governments, and families still need access to reliable computing, but they are increasingly asking a different question. They are no longer asking, does it have to be new? They are asking, does it work well? Can I trust it? Does it create value? That question lies at the heart of everything we do at Electronics Bazaar, and I believe it is why our business has never been more relevant than it is today. Let me take you through our Q1 performance highlights, the industry developments, and the strategic progress we have made. Before handing over to RKG for the financial details, we delivered another strong set of results. Revenue grew 32% year-on-year to 412.5 crores, supported by healthy demand across India and our international markets, particularly the United States, Europe, and the Middle East. Cross margin expanded to 24.65%, improving by 329 basis points over last year, and 542 basis points over the previous quarter. These numbers matter, but what gives me even greater confidence is what lies behind them. They reflect a business that is becoming stronger, more efficient, and more relevant with every passing quarter. We have started the year comfortably ahead of our 5527 guidance, and RKG will take you through the financial details in a few minutes. The world of technology is changing before our eyes. Over the last few quarters, we have spoken about three powerful trends, the rise of artificial intelligence, the growing shortage of political components, and the increasing cost of new computers. Those trends have not only continued, they have become even stronger. Memory prices have risen of further 5 to 10% in the last quarter alone. 8 GB DDR5 now stands at $126 and 16 GB DDR5 at $231 as of June 30th. Since October 2025, these prices have more than doubled. The situation has only intensified further. Effect of price increase in new PCs has further started to catch up. Price of an entry-level 8 GB dam and 512 GB SLG laptop has further risen from 40,000 to 48,000. IDC continues to revise its outlook downward for new PCs. As previously highlighted, IDC now projects global PC shipments to decline 11.3% for full year 2026, with conditions expected to worsen in the second half, driving a 20% year-on-year decline in that period alone. Excluding the growth that would otherwise have materialized, this translates to a unit decline of 30 million in just two quarters, making the impact considerably more significant and visible. The primary driver remains the persistent memory shortage, for which no meaningful relief is expected before end of 2027. As new devices become increasingly unaffordable, more and more consumer enterprises are turning to But I also want to address something directly. Even in a scenario where memory prices were to correct someday, our business proposition remains fully relevant and growing. The refurbished PC market is growing rapidly, not just because of supply constraints. In new devices, but because of a fundamental shift in how people think about value, reliability, and sustainability in technology. There was a time when buyers were hesitant about refurbished computers, and I am happy to report that we have made it easier and more comfortable for people to buy our premium refurbished computers. A product that consistently delivers on its promise, a warranty that gives real peace of mind, and a buying experience that builds user confidence. AI is accelerating computing demand across every sector. What is changing is not the need for computing. It is where the demand is being met. In mature markets, the pattern is well established. In automotive, used car sales are more than twice new car sales. In smartphones, refurbish has grown from a niche to a meaningful share of global shipments. The PC market is following a similar trajectory, and we have been able to make market more organized, not only in India, but in international markets too, by offering our premier refurbished computers through our global distribution network. Now, let me put the India opportunity in perspective. India has approximately 1 billion mobile phone users. The installed base of personal computers in this country is approximately 55 to 60 million. A fraction of mobile market size. Think about that for a moment. A billion people carrying a mobile phone, but do not own a laptop. That gap is the single largest untapped computing opportunity in the world, and an electronics bazaar is uniquely positioned to address it. Look at it from another angle. You cannot imagine modern education without a computer today, and yet India has approximately 300 million students. Africa has a student population of close to 250 million, and most of them still do not have access to one. A smartphone cannot do many things, a smartphone can do many things, but it cannot replace a laptop when a student needs to write code, complete an assignment, or prepare for an examination. As new laptop prices have risen sharply, this gap has only widened. The opportunities we see is not just in India. It extends across Africa, other developing markets where the dynamic is very similar. A large, young, digitally aspirational population that needs reliable, affordable computing. Electronic Bazaar is built to serve exactly this need. For us, this is as much a purpose as it is an opportunity. Let me also add in good measure, this requirement is not only in developing economies, it is as much relevant in developed countries as well. Because the students across the world are, they need a high-powered computer thanks to AI and other computing needs. But the good part is, the opportunity is wide, diverse, and far-ranging. The business sector requires a premium refurbished computer as much as a student. Businesses face constant pressure to manage technology cost while staying competitive. A premium deferred device from electronics bazaar that works like new, looks like new, and comes with a credible 1-2-3-year warranty is precisely what they need. Let me now talk about our channel to give better coverage and distribution reach around the world. I genuinely believe it is most important strategic and difficult to replicate asset we have built. Our strength lies in our diversity, our customer segments, geographies, and channels, and the breadth creates high barriers to entry. This quarter, we held dealer leads across India, Surat, Chennai, Pune, Mumbai, Lucknow, Delhi, and Nagpur. The response was overwhelming. The turnout and the quality of conversations at every single meet exceeded our expectations. We have launched EB Elite program for further channel engagement, and we are also doing Saipa Chacha in various cities across the country to engage with our channel. Our channel partners are our biggest pillar of growth. They are deeply invested in the electronic bazaar proposition, and they are increasingly championing it in their own markets. I also made personal visits this quarter to Chennai, Kolkata, Deiradun, Nice in France, Amsterdam, and New York, and what I saw on the ground was very encouraging. The confidence our channel partners have in our vision, the acceptance of our three-year replacement warranty in India and one year in international markets, the growing trust in premium refurbished as a category, it is all coming together. What excites me most is that our partners are not just selling Electronics Bazaar, they share our ambition. They believe this market can grow four to five times over the coming years, and they are investing in that belief alongside us. We continue to actively work on strengthening our global distribution network by onboarding distributors across key international markets. People often ask what Electronics Bazaar, what makes Electronics Bazaar difficult to replicate? The answer is simple. It's not one capability or advantage. It's three. Deep sourcing relationships, in-house refurbishment capabilities, and a very strong global distribution network built over many years of effort and credibility built over decades. These three strengths reinforce each other and create a very good compounding business model. Underpinning all of this is a product that is earning just globally, a premium fee for this device that works like new, looks like new, and comes with a 1-2-3 year credible and reliable warranty. It is what gives an enterprise IT manager the confidence to deploy our devices. It is what gives a student's parent the confidence to buy one. And it is what gives our channel partner the confidence to champion us in their markets. A few updates on the company. As of end of Q1 F527, electronics bazaar supplies to 49 countries, up from 46 at the end of F526. Customer touch points have grown to 5130, and our supplier base now stands at 773, reflecting deeper and more diversified sourcing across geographies. Our teammates, our biggest asset, have grown to 2,420 as of June 2026, up from 2,148, reflecting continued investment in production, sales, and customer support. Finally, as I look ahead, I am more confident than ever before where electronic bazaar is headed. The growing acceptance of premium refurbished and opportunities in both business and education segment Make our business model more relevant, useful, and compelling by the day. We will continue to stay close to our customers, execute with discipline, and build the capabilities that will make Electronics Bazaar the world's most trusted name in premium refurbished computing. Thank you. I now hand over to Rakhirji for the financial details.

Thank you, Shadarji, and good evening, everyone. Let me walk you through the financial performance for Q1 F527. Consolidated revenue for the quarter stood at Rs. 412.5 crore, representing a year-on-year growth of 32%. As Sharjee mentioned, this was given by sustained demand momentum across our domestic and international markets, particularly the United States, Europe, and Middle East. So, this is the first gross profit for the year, for the quarter is to that rupees 101.6 gore, with gross margin expanding to. 24.6%, an improvement of 329 basis points year-on-year, and 542 basis points sequentially. This improvement reflects better procurement and improved realization across markets. EBITDA for the quarter stood at Rs. 52.8 crore, with EBITDA margin at 12.8%, an improvement of 156 basis points. We are on here compared to 11.3% in Q1FI26. Profit of tax for the quarter is 28.9 crore. A growth of 56% year on year. Paid margin expanded to 7% compared to 5.9% in Q1FI26. An improvement of 108 basis points year on year. Overall, Q1FI27 has been a strong start to the year. We target revenue growth, meaningful margin expansion at the gross and EBITDA level, and a pet that has grown significantly year on year. We are comfortably ahead of our full year FY27 guidance, and we remain focused on continuing to deliver profitable, sustainable growth. Thank you.

Operator

Thank you very much. We will now begin the question and answer session. Anyone who wishes to ask a question may press star and 1 on their touch-tone telephone. If you wish to remove yourself from the question queue, you may press star and 2. Participants are requested to use handsets while asking a question. Ladies and gentlemen, we will wait for a moment while the question queue assembles. The first question is from the line of Chirag Jain from MK Global. Please proceed.

Chirag Jain Analyst — MK Global

Yeah, good evening, everyone, and congratulations on very strong performance. So, my first question would be if you can share some of the operating parameter details, like the number of units that we did in the fourth quarter was 241,000, and obviously the split between laptops and other categories, if you can share for the first quarter and like-to-like performance on a year-and-year basis.

Shailik Mehta Analyst — Indo As

Hi, good evening. Thank you.

Operator

Sir, your voice is not clear. I'll reconnect you.

Shailik Mehta Analyst — Indo As

Please. Am I audible clear?

Yes, sir, now much better. Okay, thank you. Just to repeat, total number of laptops is 1,8000, and test laptops and others is 42,000. And in terms of total revenue proportion, it is 81% realization from laptops and balance from others. Also, at the same point of time, I would also want to give another operational parameter in terms of our revenue breakup or the geographies from which the revenue is coming in this quarter. 36% is out of India, 12% is from Middle East. US and Europe together account for 47%, US being 24%, and Europe being 23%, and others is about 5%. So, we've seen a huge improvement in the geographic mix as well, more moving to developed economies, and of course, India is also continuing to grow.

Chirag Jain Analyst — MK Global

Okay, thank you. Sir, also, if you can share an update on the working capital cycle and probably the debt associated with that.

Shailik Mehta Analyst — Indo As

Yeah. So, in terms of net debt

that we had at the end of last quarter, the working capital is absolutely similar, the same size of working capital. But in terms of net debt, the net debt has increased by about 100 odd crores. This number was about 399 crores, almost rounding off to 300 crores. At the end of March 26, this is going to 406 crores. And in terms of overall capital employed, it is about, it is marginally gone down from where it was at the end of March 26.

Chirag Jain Analyst — MK Global

Okay. And just last thing, in terms of our profitability, the standalone operations seems to be, seems to have done better than the overseas operation, which is console minus standalone is what we calculated. Typically, the overseas operation has been more profitable compared to India operations. So, any thoughts over here? Is it sort of a one-off or maybe a sort of a structural thing, something to read out over here? Thank you.

Yeah, no, it's more acceptability, more deeper penetration. So I don't think directionally there's any directional difference in terms of realization. Realizations will continue to be better off in the overseas market related to India. And wherever we see deeper opportunities, we've been able to mine those opportunities better in different geographies. And India has also started playing well in the ecosystem.

Chirag Jain Analyst — MK Global

Okay. Thank you so much.

This is Sharab. Also, I would like to mention a few things. Due to our deeper penetration in all the markets, we are actually facing negligible competition and that is allowing us to price our products better. I have personally visited, as I mentioned in my opening remarks, a lot of markets, a lot of customers and then Zoom calls with our key customers around the country. And the acceptance is increasing. And acceptance is more structural and people are paying, people are paying well for the quality and the service that is associated with the product. So these all factors put together and overall reach that we are able to penetrate and the journey continues because we have just scaled the surface. We have a long, a long way to cover in this area, but the improvement and margin is obviously visible and visible because of this.

Shailik Mehta Analyst — Indo As

Understood. Thank you so much, sir. I will come back in the queue.

Operator

Thank you. The next question is from the line of Shailik Mehta from Indo as well. Please proceed.

Shailik Mehta Analyst — Indo As

Hi, am I audible?

Operator

Yes, you're audible.

Shailik Mehta Analyst — Indo As

Okay. So broadly a question around the India margin versus the global margins. So you see that the consolidated margins are around 24.6% this quarter, which is up almost 29 basis points year on year, and also sequentially 542 basis points. Let the India standalone margin was only 21%, which implies that, you know, the overall overseas subsidiary ran close to 30%. So here in this quarter, you know, your consolidated revenue fell almost 37%. The India Porter on Porter, the India entity actually built 75 crores of inventory while the group net drew down to 38 by 38 crores. So can you split the consolidated gross margin lift into geography mix shifting towards higher gross margin US UAE entities? And seasonally soft India quarter versus, you know, the genuinely same geography improvement and as India volume accelerates to the Reddington channel, what blended gross margin would you actually underwrite for the year?

I would say you will, uh, uh, Dan, the breakup, absolutely and directionally correct. 21% English gross margin in India and international going to almost touching 30% in the quarter, right? And see, the acceptability of the product is increasing and getting deeper both in India as well as in the international markets. The point to elaborate over here is if you noticed my earlier comment, our geographic spread international has widened in the US and Europe, being almost 47% of the total.

Operator

Operator request has been initiated. If you'd like to cancel this request, please press star zero again.

Geographies, which are enriching internationally as well. So, I think it will be fair for you to assume that you should look at in terms of an overall guidance number as to directionally which side we are going, and we are working well on the directional side, and that is resonating from what we have delivered in India as well as on the international business in this part.

Shailik Mehta Analyst — Indo As

Okay, and that's how much? Can you reiterate that once, please? Could you repeat? What was the question? No, I was just asking if you could reiterate your directional target once again, please here.

I think in terms of guidance you are referring to? Saraj, you would want to address that?

Yeah, so two things I would like to, before I do guidance, let me tell you that our products, we are moving away from our product being commoditized, and trust is a huge margin level that is available to us. So you can imagine where we can go, because frankly, we are finding negligible competition in the areas and customers that we deal with, and we try to expand that reach. Moving away from like a commodity product is a huge, huge margin lever. In terms of specific guidance, we would like to revise our guidance from earlier 25% to 30% and margin for the net pack level margin, we would like to change from 0.5 to 0.75 and 1%.

Okay.

Thank you so much. And we would like to be the idea is that we are always conservative in our approach. It is better to under promise and over deliver rather than do the reverse. So our idea and hallmark has always been the same as you would have observed in the past.

Shailik Mehta Analyst — Indo As

Yeah. Okay. Thank you.

Operator

Thank you. The next question is from the line of Sunil Jail from Nirmal Bank Securities. Please proceed.

Sunil Jain Analyst — Nirmal Bank Securities

Yeah, thanks for taking my question, and congratulations on good number. My question relates to volume growth. The volume growth is around 18%. Am I correct? Combined.

That's right.

Sunil Jain Analyst — Nirmal Bank Securities

Okay, and the balance growth we are getting is on account of realization. So in that, how much is because of geographical mix or product mix and how much price increase which we had taken?

So, in terms of the overall unit numbers, you're right, it is about 18% and the overall growth being 32%. The substantial part is, and while we say this, I think there is enough emphasis that we resonated in our earlier calls as well that focus is continuing to grow to be on volume growth as well as value growth. So, a large part of the value realization is on account of deeper penetration across markets in India, as well as widening and going deeper in the U.S. and Europe. So, it would be fair to say that it is coming across the ecosystem, and it's not specifically coming from any specific limited geography or limited area. So Endeavor, as Shraddhi mentioned, it is no longer being positioned as a commoditized product. It's being positioned as a service proposition, and that is being accepted well, and we are seeing the fruits of that.

So, also, I would like to add here one thing. The ASP expansion is on account of two things. One is product mix and the gross margin expansion. Both.

Sunil Jain Analyst — Nirmal Bank Securities

Yeah, my question comes from the point that we are seeing cost inflation and because of that, the price inflation is also happening. And the inventory holding for the company is quite substantial. So, was there any inventory gain which we are getting because of this?

Absolutely. See, we have been keeping, as I mentioned in the last two early calls, strategic inventory. Because of the price increases, we have to buy ahead of the price increase cycle. And that is helping us, that is helping in increasing the gross margin, that is also helping us increasing our penetration and sales. So yes, absolutely, we are, and this is the reality as of today, because the prices continue to rise, dispositions will become scary, will become scarce, and hence we'll have to keep higher inventory. So keeping higher inventory has been advantageous to us.

Sunil Jain Analyst — Nirmal Bank Securities

You said that this quarter, again, you had seen memory prices increasing by around 10%. So, how you look at this trend now? Are they reaching to a higher level, or still, this process can still continue for some more time?

Sir, the memory price rose by 10% this quarter, and I actually made an error in my opening remarks. They have not doubled since October. They have gone up by five times. Now, how much they will go further, meaning the experts have differing opinions. It's not coming down. It's not coming down to the old level. It can, what I hear from a lot of experts is that it continues to rise 5-10% every quarter. And it's not just the memory, it's the processor, SSD, and memory is fundamental to any technological device that we use, not only just AI, but even the smartwatches, health devices, everywhere memory is being used. Now, it may go further, but I would like to address another thing which is more fundamental. The business is not memory-dependent. We are not riding a wave. We are building the infra for a market that will be very, very large. So, yes, these are tailwinds that are available to us, but the headroom was always available to us, even when we came with our IPO. So, the market opportunity is immense, but current situation is definitely helpful.

Sunil Jain Analyst — Nirmal Bank Securities

And one statistical question, like you are in B2B, have you any thought of whether you can venture into B2C as well, or some thought on that?

Yeah, sir, so, see, we get a better appreciation of quality, consistency, and warranty when we deal in B2B, when business and education are our ultimate customers. B2C, by definition, requires a lot of investments and there is a lot of price elasticity. You know all three brands like Dell, HP, and Lenovo, and you can see their market cap, and that's a reflection of their focus on the business, and Dell has very strong focus on business, enterprise, and education segment. See, I believe never say never. We can engage with retailers if we find that our proposition is getting properly displayed there and we are able to get the margin that we want. In the current situation, we are continuing to focus on B2B segment because the opportunity is very large and long. We have huge runway ahead of us even in this segment.

Sunil Jain Analyst — Nirmal Bank Securities

Yeah, great. Just a data question, if you can give me. What's the inventory at the end of the Q1, if possible?

Yeah, the inventory at the end of Q1 is about 700 odd quotes. This has gone down from about 740 odd quotes at the end of previous quarter.

Sunil Jain Analyst — Nirmal Bank Securities

Sorry, end of the year. Okay, great, sir. Thank you very much, and all the best for future.

Thanks. Just before the next question, I would want to address another operational highlight in terms of ASPs, which I missed and which would be possibly in some questions as well. So in terms of ASPs, in terms of laptops during the quarter, we have an ASP of about 30,763. If you were to compare this to the corresponding quarter, it was about 27,500. And if you were to look at this in terms of the previous quarter, it was 30,000. So, there's been about 12% increase in realization on a year-over-year basis and almost at 2.5% over sequential quarter basis. The same, if you were to look from computers' perspective, this number is about 19,300 altrupees in comparison to almost 17,500 years back. So that's a 10% better realization. From a sequential quarter perspective, this number is moved from 19,090 rupees to about 19,326, which is about 1.5% better. On an overall basis, 12%.

Shailik Mehta Analyst — Indo As

Yeah, maybe the next question, please.

Operator

Thank you. The next question is from the line of Shreyanj from Equentes Wealth Advisors. Please proceed.

Shreyanj Analyst — Equentes Wealth Advisors

Yeah, thank you for the opportunity. Most of the questions have been answered. Just a bit on the other expenses side, I see that has jumped more than 65% y-on-y compared to your other operating profit.

Operator

Operator request has been initiated. If you'd like to cancel this request, please press star zero again.

Shreyanj Analyst — Equentes Wealth Advisors

So, just wanted to understand what is leading to this higher jump in other expenses for this quarter, and the other part would be what would be the tax rates that we should assume for this year, effective tax rate going forward for F27 million.

So, coming to the second question first, the tax rate we should assume on a similar basis at between 10% to 12% for the full year on a consult basis, yeah, and Prama, on your question on the other expenses, this number has gone. is increased by about 68% as you rightly observe. But also, this is on account of, I think what we are also doing is there's a lot of incentivization that is going on for a better realization of better sales. So that is also leading to that aspect. And I don't think there's any significant cause of concern or area to highlight as to what has led to any specific number out of this. So, it's directionally okay is what I would say.

Shreyanj Analyst — Equentes Wealth Advisors

Fair enough. Got it. Thank you. I think that's it from my end.

Operator

Thank you. The next question is from the line of Paris Cheda from Purpleino Vertex Ventures. Please proceed.

Paris Cheda Analyst — Purpleino Vertex Ventures

Thank you, sir, for this opportunity, and good evening to you. Sir, just one thing, you know, with this recent middle-earth disruption again that has, you know, taken up, is our UAE refurbishment facility or logistics of rate cost anyway impacted again? I know that over the last on-call, they said we were okay with it, but just, you know, reconfirming that.

Yeah, so Sharad here, there is no disruption at all in our UAE. All our facilities are up and running, and the shipments are also going. The shipments are through air, and there is no disruption at all. And you may have noticed for last one or two months, whatever skirmishes or attacks have happened, nothing has happened on the UAE side. So UAE remains insulated from the current Middle East situation. And, but obviously the situation is not ideal, but the government of UAE has managed situation very well. Around 500 missiles and 2000 drones have been fired upon UAE, but we see no visible damage anywhere. So they manage it very well. The interception rate was very high and that has allowed commerce to function. The employee count has in fact risen and the shipments are going as usual.

Paris Cheda Analyst — Purpleino Vertex Ventures

Understood, sir. Thank you so much on that. And, sir, just kind of quantify, you know, your targets for, and I know inventory is a strategic advantage to us at this point in time, but generally, you know, do you have any specific targets for inventory days, receivable days, and cash conversion cycle over the next, you know, one to two years? So, just any steps, you know, for improving the operating cash flow, basically.

No, fair enough. My situation is very evolving and current situation demands that we take the call demanded by situation and strategy. The business by design is procurement heavy because our procurements cannot be linear. We buy from large corporates and when they dispose of the assets. We, when we buy that, it gives us a lot of distinct advantages that allows you to, there's a need to keep large range of finished stock to be able to service our Indian and overseas customers instantly. This has a very positive impact on our gross margin. Now, again, in terms of inventory, the inventory needs to be broken up for raw material, semi-finished, and finished inventory. And we have to keep a good amount of 30-40 days of finished inventory as well, because the essence of the businesses that we are able to supply our customers, and these are business and education customers, the instant delivery of one single model, which is very, very good mode that we have. We don't find people doing that. And if we are able to do that, we get price advantages and that converts in better margin. But it is obviously procurement heavy. So on one hand is fiscal prudence. On another hand is reality of business. We have to strike a balance between these two. Also, in our business, we don't have any fixed capital worth talking about, there are no machinery involved, there are no other things. So the business is working capital highly. That said, Our job is to drive efficiency, and we are working towards that. And we will continue to manage working capital prudently. But at the same time, when the business requirement demands that there is a good, huge opportunity and huge margin associated with that, I think it makes sense to take that call. I'll just try to give you an example. We have recently got an opportunity from a very large, it will not be right for me to name the bank, but from a very large bank of the US. And that is around 60,000 good desktops coming at a higher generation coming at very good price. Now, if you take that inventory, we get margin upside, huge margins. But if you decline that inventory, obviously, or if you buy on not the full thing, then we don't have control of the material. And if you buy the lesser quantity, the margin gets, margin gets limited. And also very important is the timing of the sale because the prices are on uptrend. So we need to be mindful of that.

Paris Cheda Analyst — Purpleino Vertex Ventures

Right. So what you are saying is the inventory is also one of the strategic levers to enhancing your margins, basically.

Absolutely. Absolutely. We do believe that. We buy from banks. We buy from using companies. We need control of the inventory as well as that from the procurement side. And from the sales side, our customer in Australia bought some 3,000 laptops from us one shot because only we had the inventory. And if only we have the inventory, you can imagine that only we have the pricing power at that time. So, we are moving away from our product being commoditized, and obviously, this is not just selling the inventory, another thing associated is, and the quality of the product looks like new, works like new, and with our warranty. So, trust element is a, is very, very important. Trust and other strategic decisions, they are, uh, both are huge margin levers.

Paris Cheda Analyst — Purpleino Vertex Ventures

Right. So, what contribution do you expect from, you know, Reddington, Supertron, Ingram over the next 12 to 18 months?

I'm sorry, I'm not a correct person to do that, but they are a respected company and we are working with them. Their business contribution is significant and obviously increasing our reach. See, we work with the city distributors, local distributors, as well as three large national distributors. And my Reddington is number one in India and Graham is number two and Sopatron is also, I think, number fifth. So, and also a very important point to note that it speaks volumes that these large distributors have, we are privileged to work with them because of the trust that we have, our three and a half meters of business experience, as well as the credibility that we carry. They cannot, it's difficult for any large distributor to sell refurbished product of any guy because their credibility is also there. I will not, I would refrain from giving the exact contribution, but yes, overall our pie should increase and their share should be significant.

Paris Cheda Analyst — Purpleino Vertex Ventures

I said this last query, and this is, you know, one of the little critical ones for me to understand. You said that, you know, one of the key factors for improving your margin is also the realization, you know, and it's not a commodity sale, you know, and trust is a big factor driving, you know, enhancement of margin. So what I wanted to understand is that eventually, at some point, your refurbished laptop prices will be benchmarked to the new laptop prices at some point. You have a little bit of, you know, that room that is available to, you know, us in our business. Now, of course, trust helps you, you know, achieve sales, but to enhance your margins in terms of realization, aren't we really, sir, you know, sort of in some way or the other connected to the new laptop prices, you know, effectively, and therefore capped also by, you know, certain percentage of the new laptop prices.

So, I appreciate you for asking this question. Currently, we are pegging our product, we are refined around 30%, right? When you compare that with phone or car market, the refurbished phone or refurbished car, they are like 50% of a new phone or new car. Now, if I have to increase this 30 to 35, you can imagine the margin expansion happens by 17%. Add that to our current margin. I'm not giving the guidance but please understand it's in the right perspective. We have, as the trust keeps on growing, as we keep on doing the better job which we intend to, we are, we can bring it to from 30 to 50. Obviously, it won't go beyond, I'm not saying it will go beyond 50. But even if it goes to 50, you can do the math better than me.

Paris Cheda Analyst — Purpleino Vertex Ventures

Understood. So that's how you are driven in terms of margins and that, that kind of A room may be there, I mean, of course, in other industries, but that's one of the factors that influences. Thank you.

And also the requirement remains lumpy because we have to buy the right product and the right opportunity is not. It's not another industry where we can make our procurement of purchases linear. As much as you want to, it is difficult to achieve.

Paris Cheda Analyst — Purpleino Vertex Ventures

Yeah.

But we are mindful of what you're trying to say. Yeah.

Paris Cheda Analyst — Purpleino Vertex Ventures

Yeah. Eventually sourcing has a limit, you know, to enhancing margin. But I would think that if you can enhance your realizations, I mean, other than, of course, the volume. So, both ways.

We intend to do the, you are right. So, as you go more deep, like my colleagues yesterday were in, Colombia, right? They had cracked a very good deal from a bank, from a bank there. Now, these are market gaps there. So, there is opportunity to announce margin on the procurement side. Because the kind of services that we gave, the data, safety, the other sustainability goal, and ability to buy entire lot in one shot. That's another thing. So that's a margin lever. But obviously, on the front-end side, the sales is huge margin lever. As you keep enhancing your proposition, as more and more price develops, your ability to command price becomes more. And that is win-win for everyone.

Paris Cheda Analyst — Purpleino Vertex Ventures

Do you see yourself, you know, becoming one of the Dell or the, you know, HPs of the refurbished laptops 5 years down the line or 10 years down the line?

I, I am, I don't want to compare. They are big guys. I just want to say we, we, we want to become, may make us best and most trusted global refurbishment brand. That's all I would like to say. I would not compare myself with anyone. They are big people.

Paris Cheda Analyst — Purpleino Vertex Ventures

Thank you very much, sir. Thank you so much, sir.

Operator

Thank you. Ladies and gentlemen, in order to ensure that management is able to address questions from the participants in this conference, please restrict your question to two per participant. Should you have a follow-up question, please rejoin the queue. Thank you. The next question is from the line of Avinash Karumanji from Modi dal Oswal. Please proceed.

Avinash Karumanji Analyst — Motilal Oswal

Good evening, sir. Congratulations on a good set of members. So my first question is regarding the procurement. So as you said, the price of the republished laptops are going on, new laptops are going up. So are you facing any challenges in procurement? One, regarding the ASP and two, since the new laptops are going up, so the earlier guys who are discarding a laptop earlier at two years or three years lifetime, now they would like to accelerate for one more year because the cost of procuring a new laptop also goes up for them. So, are you facing any kind of challenges in procuring?

Yes, both are correct, actually. But see, the prices of the use or the disposition that happened are trailing. They are not happening in tandem. So obviously, in such situation, when we are privy to information and knowledge, when we buy before, it helps us. Second, obviously, there are two things happening. Company might defer their purchases or the leases might get extended. Will it make the disposition overall pie lower? Absolutely, yes. Again, in such situation, it is prudent and wise for us to keep, increase our buying power as well as to buy before it comes, right? So both things that we are doing, and we have to preempt such situation, and we are doing it.

Avinash Karumanji Analyst — Motilal Oswal

If you can give a rough indication of how much the procurement prices have gone up in the last one year. ESPs have gone up by 12-13% in the last one year, if I look at it. So, how much would your procurements have gone up?

So, we have been able to procure, thanks to our reach, at almost at the similar prices that is getting reflected. More goodness should be seen in the coming quarters. But we are able to secure material. At the old prices because of our contracts and because of the all the associated services that we offer to our vendors.

Avinash Karumanji Analyst — Motilal Oswal

Ok, ok. So, it is safe to assume that at least for this next couple of quarters you are not going to see any challenges in procurement.

Now, obviously, challenges and procurement, we are well positioned to address and accept this illness and to handle the situation. We will keep the inventory and that's why we have to keep our inventories.

Avinash Karumanji Analyst — Motilal Oswal

Okay, got it. And second thing is regarding OPEX. If I look at the employee costs and other expenses, they are continuously running ahead of the revenue for the last many years. I know that we are expanding into multiple geographies, adding new partners, but when should we be able to see an operating leverage on them?

We are on the expansion path and we have to invest in employees and both on the management side, marketing, as well as production. And it takes some time for our production people to come up the curve. So we have to hire in advance. And because this is a niche industry, we have to train them, they go through the training curve and then their productivity increases. So we have to We have to hire people in advance, and obviously marketing and other expenses are happening. As you would have seen, we are doing channel meals, we are doing other meals to expand our proposition. These all things put together have a positive impact on gross margin. Now, seeing the operating leverage is a situation when we grow less or something, but yeah, we would like to see that. We would like to, obviously, there will be a situation when the productivity of our employees and other things and management strength will not obviously rise in tandem of the sales. Current situation demands that we beef up our organization and all the categories so that we remain organizationally strong to take advantage of the industry that we are in. And with or without the memory price limits. So that is the requirement. And our marketing is definitely happening is helping us in amplifying our reach to the right segment that we want. That will be to be segment.

Avinash Karumanji Analyst — Motilal Oswal

Okay, okay. So these should run ahead of the revenue at least for the next couple of years.

Not that I won't say that. I won't say that. They won't rise in proportion. Meaning, the operating leverage will obviously kick in very soon. But yes, currently, you have to make your idea visible. You have to make your products visible. You have to do channel meets. You have to do chaika charcha. You have to do small meets in Dallas and Shadam and other places. It's very, very, very required because we don't have any other parallel. We have this disadvantage of no peer comparison. So, we have to amplify and publicize our REITs. That's why these are being done at this point in time.

Avinash Karumanji Analyst — Motilal Oswal

Okay, okay, got it. And second thing is a small clarification. So, I know that your guidance is 25% and you beat the guidance by significant margin and also raise the guidance. But if I look at it, the growth has decelerated in the last, compared to the last two quarters. The last two quarters, you have gone up by 40% odds, and now the growth has decelerated to 30%. So, is this a seasonal effect, or how should we look into it?

See, this is a low seasonality quarter. First quarter is usually a low seasonality quarter, but yeah. See, again, I would say that we would rather be conservative, and Give conservative guidance. Yeah.

Avinash Karumanji Analyst — Motilal Oswal

Okay. No, my question is generally that we have beefed up the inventory in the anticipation of price increases, and the growth is slowing down. So, would it be standing the balance sheet going forward? That's what I'm trying to look at it.

I don't think growth will slow down. I think that answers your question. Our job while we give conservative guidance, my and my colleague's job remains to accelerate the growth both on top line and bottom line side.

Shailik Mehta Analyst — Indo As

Got it, got it. Thank you. I'll join with you. Thank you.

Operator

As there are no further questions from the participants, I hand over the conference to Mr. Sharad Khandelwal, sir, for closing comments. Over to you, sir.

Thank you. Thank you for everyone for joining this call. We really appreciate your time. I would like to say the category is real. The opportunity is large, and we are just getting started. Quality at an accessible price is not a misproposition. It's a universal one. And I think if I say this, better product, better price, better warranty, the MAC is simple and you can imagine what it can collectively achieve for us. Thank you all. Thank you for joining this call.

Shailik Mehta Analyst — Indo As

Really appreciate the time and really appreciate your support.

Operator

Thank you. On behalf of Murtilal Oswal Financial Service Limited and GNG Electronics Limited, that concludes this conference. Thank you for joining us and you may now disconnect your lines. Thank you.

Analyst Q&A · 12 questions
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