Sun European Partners’ Bonmarché valued at £100m in IPO

The company sold a 40% stake in the flotation, equivalent to 20 million shares at a price of £2 per unit. All proceeds from the IPO, totalling £40m, went to the holding company owned by Sun European, BM Holdings, allowing the private equity firm to partially exit the business.

Shares rose steadily throughout the first day of trading, reaching £2.3 per share on 21 November, valuing the business at around £115m.

Following the flotation, Sun European will still hold a 52.4% stake in Bonmarché and has agreed to a lock-in period of six months following the company's stock market debut.

Investec Bank acted as financial adviser, nominated adviser and broker for the flotation. The company started trading on the AIM on 20 November 2013 under the ticker symbol "BON".

Previous funding
The flotation came less than two years after Sun European bought Bonmarché for £10m from its parent company Peacock Group, which had separately gone into administration in January 2012, according to unquote" data.

Following its acquisition, Sun European and Bonmarché's management implemented a turnaround strategy for the business, closing a number of Bonmarché's unprofitable stores (equivalent to a third of all outlets). The two parties also negotiated a 29% reduction in rental payments for the property leases of the business's remaining stores.

The company also appointed a number of new senior- and mid-management level staff, as well as focusing its supply chain on a smaller number of key suppliers.

Bonmarché has been owned by private equity once before its takeover by Sun European. In July 2001, Isis Equity Partners backed the £41.3m management buyout of the company, providing £7.3m for an unratcheted 20% stake. The company's founders retained a 70% shareholding while management held the remaining 10%. Bank of Scotland provided a debt package worth £34m for the deal, according to unquote" data.

The following July, Isis sold the business to Peacock Group for £75m.

Company
Founded in 1982, Bonmarché is headquartered in Wakefield, West Yorkshire. The company employs 1,700 staff and recorded turnover of £146.8m in the 12 months ending March 2013, as well as an EBITDA (after exceptionals) of £7.8m.

Bonmarché is a retailer of clothing, footwear, accessories and jewellery, which is predominantly aimed at the female over-50s market in the UK. The company currently operates 265 stores across the UK.

People
Beth Butterwick is the CEO of Bonmarché. Sun European managing director Tim Mason has been appointed to the company's board of directors as chairman and shareholder director, while Sun European principal Benjamin Buerstedde will take up the role of observer.

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• Topics
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