Private Equity Firms Join Together For Pepco Group Bid

Sky News has reported that a consortium of three private equity companies is considering putting together a bid for Pepco Group - the owner of Poundland.

One of the companies is understood to be Advent International, which owned Poundland more than ten years ago and sold the retailer for £200m.

The two other private equity firms involved in the consortium are Hellman & Friedman and Mid Europa Partners.  Private equity company Partners Group is also understood to have an interest in the Group.

A bid is expected to value Pepco Group at more than €4.5bn (£3.8bn).  Total Group revenue for the 2018 financial year was €3,038, with total group sales growth of 10.7%.

Steinhoff, Pepco Group's parent company, is understood to have been considering launching an IPO to help raise funds following a 2017 accounting scandal which saw the business overstate profits and assets by nearly $12 billion.  

Pepco Group operates under the trading fascias of PEPCO, Poundland and Dealz, with around 2,700 stores across 14 European countries.  Around 33,000 people are employed by the retailer, which is looking to open around 300 stores a year.

Andy Bond, formerly CEO of ASDA, is the CEO of the Group; CFO Nick Wharton was previously the CEO at Dunelm, and CFO at both Superdry and Halfords, and COO Sean Cardinaal has been with the business for more than 15 years, including five years as CEO of its Ackermans operating company.

Steinhoff is understood to be looking for bids of between €4.5bn and €5bn for the Group if it is to consider selling instead of undertaking an IPO.

Source : Insight DIY Team

Image : nrqemi / Shutterstock.com 1223281819 

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