Chennai (IANS): City-based online education company Everonn Systems India Ltd is planning a franchisee model for accelerated growth of its retail segment, a top official said.

"We are in favour of going light on assets. Franchising out is a model which would enable the business to grow faster," Everonn managing director P. Kishore told IANS.

The major clients of the Rs.928-million Everonn are schools, colleges and retail stores. The company supplies necessary hardware to schools and colleges and also offers various courses - curriculum and non curriculum-based - for students.

Everonn has also set up retail centres where it offers different software courses and certificate courses like the Test of English as Foreign Language (TOEFL).

Kishore said evaluations were already on to find the pros and cons of the franchisee model.

According to him, out the 29 retail centres of the company, only two are franchisee-owned.

"We hope to have 25 franchisees next fiscal and increase the numbers thereafter," he added.

With over 4,400 state government schools under its fold, Everonn is a major player in this segment.

"There are around 800,000 government schools and 300,000 private schools in India and less than 15 percent of them have the necessary computer infrastructure. It will take a long time to equip all the schools with computers," Kishore said.

Nearly 35 percent of the company's turnover comes from state government schools.

"When it comes to margins, private schools, colleges and retail centres are better," he said.

He added that Everonn will start targeting polytechnic colleges to expand its reach in the country's educational institution segment.