// Poundland owner Pepco set to list on the stockmarket in Poland
// The retailer said the IPO would mark an “important milestone” as it seeks European expansion
// Pepco currently operates over 3200 stores across 16 countries
The parent company of Poundland, Pepco Group, has confirmed plans to go on the stock market in Poland following recent speculation.
Pepco, which also owns an eponymous discount chain as well as the Dealz fascia, said the IPO would mark an “important milestone” as it seeks further European expansion.
Pepco Group trades from more than 450 Poundland stores in the UK, and has over 3200 stores across 16 countries.
READ MORE:
- Poundland rolls out chilled & frozen offering to another 46 shops
- Poundland owner Pepco mulls £3.9bn Polish stock market listing
In Poland alone, there are more than 1000 Pepco stores, alongside a presence of Dealz stores.
It’s thought that the firm opted for Warsaw because it has a bigger presence in Eastern Europe.
Pepco Group is headed up by former Asda chief executive Andy Bond and employs more than 30,000 people.
“Today’s announcement of our intention to float on the Warsaw Stock Exchange marks an important milestone for the group,” Bond said.
“We are strongly positioned to deliver significant long-term growth, given our market leading customer proposition in the most attractive sector of retail, the scale of opportunity ahead of us as we expand across the entirety of Europe and the investment in strengthening the infrastructure of the business over recent years.
“We have a track record of delivering consistent, market-leading sales and profit growth over the past three years, the foundation for which is a relentless focus on how we provide our customers with the lowest prices on their regular shopping needs across apparel, homewares-led general merchandise and fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) week in week out.
“Our business is even stronger than it was a year ago, including an expanded capability within our dedicated sourcing operation, Pepco Group Sourcing, a significantly improved working capital profile agreed with our key suppliers and an ongoing focus on constantly improving our ESG capability across the group.”
Pepco Group had initially planned a stock market listing last year, with analysts expecting a London stock market listing at the time.
Earlier this year, Steinhoff, the South African retail conglomerate that owns Pepco Group, said it was re-examining the possibility of a flotation.
Click here to sign up to Retail Gazette‘s free daily email newsletter
