By Mark Kleinman, City Editor, In Davos
The furniture chain DFS is to target a valuation of up to £1bn in a London stock market listing next month that will include a substantial offering to retail investors.
Sky News has learnt that DFS will unveil plans on or around 4 February for a long-awaited flotation.
The company, which is owned by private equity group Advent International, will say that it wants to raise well over £100m from the initial public offering (IPO) and that it will use the proceeds to redeem a £200m bond.
Advent bought DFS, the UK's second-biggest furniture retailer after IKEA, in 2010, netting Lord Kirkham, its founder, several hundred million pounds.
Sources said that Hargreaves Lansdown, the broker, has been appointed to co-ordinate a retail offering for DFS, which is one of the UK's biggest-spending advertisers.
The eventual valuation of the company would fall somewhere between £600m and £1bn depending on demand for the shares, they added.
The company is chaired by Richard Baker, the former boss of Boots, and who also chairs Whitbread, the owner of Costa Coffee.
Mr Baker is a significant shareholder in DFS, and is understood to have discussed with Advent whether he should chair the company when it lists amid concern about whether he might be perceived by the City as not sufficiently independent.
Banking sources said that that issue had been overcome and that he would continue in the role, with at least one other non-executive director expected to be added to the board.
DFS, which has recently expanded into the Netherlands, has performed robustly during difficult economic times since its 2010 buyout.
In a trading update issued to bondholders just before Christmas, Ian Filby, chief executive, said: "I am very pleased to report another strong quarterly performance, building on the momentum established in the second half of our last financial year.
"Our results aggregated for the last four quarters, covering the period ended 1 November 2014, represent a record twelve months for DFS."
DFS had more positive news last year when competition watchdogs dropped an investigation into the chain's pricing practices.
The company has swooped for rivals Sofa Workshop and Dwell in separate takeover deals, and now operates more than 100 stores in the UK under the DFS brand.
UBS, Jefferies and Numis Securities are working on the listing, with Berenberg added to the syndicate, insiders said.
A spokesman declined to comment.
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