Bridgepoint's Fat Face cancels IPO

Ellie Pullen
22 May 2014

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Bridgepoint-backed UK clothing retailer Fat Face has scrapped plans to raise ТЃ110m in an IPO on the premium segment of the London Stock Exchange.

The flotation would have valued Fat Face at around £440m. The company had originally planned on paying off senior debt with the IPO proceeds, while Bridgepoint was also expecting to partially divest its stake.

Bridgepoint acquired the company in a £360m secondary buyout from Advent International in March 2007, according to unquote" data.

Fat Face has cited "current equity market conditions" as the main factor in its cancellation announcement. According to reports, the decision stems from a lack of interest for other retail IPOs in London.

Last week saw shares in Charterhouse's Card Factory fall by 10% in conditional dealings the day after its IPO, despite having already priced the stock at the bottom end of the initial indicative price range (225 pence per share).

Likewise, shares in Warburg Pincus's Poundland had been on a steady decline since its IPO in March – which was priced at 300 pence per share – and fell below its initial price to 287 pence earlier this week. However, yesterday saw an uptick in the stock, with the shares reaching 311 pence apiece at market close.

KKR's Pets At Home is also not faring much better, having experienced a plunge in mid-April, with share price falling to 205 pence, having listed at 245 pence. After a small recovery, the stock has once again tumbled this week, closing on 202 pence per share yesterday.