DFS valued at £585m as it sets share price range ahead of float

The furniture retailer expects to raise gross proceeds of £98m from the issue of new shares, which will be used to reduce debt.

The float will comprise between 79 million and 107 million shares which will be offered to retail investors in the UK and institutional investors in the UK and US.

DFS has revealed its board and and senior management may choose to sell up to 30% of their holdings as part of the IPO.

The final pricing of shares will be revealed on March 6 and the conditional dealing of shares on the London Stock Exchange will begin on the same day, while unconditional dealings will begin on March 11.

DFS chief executive Ian Filby said: “Our vision is to take DFS from being a great British business to a world-class business.

“We have a clear strategy to further broaden our appeal, enhance our service and ensure our products are easily accessible to customers through our UK and international store expansion programme, continued development of our multichannel proposition and constant enhancement of our product range.”

Independent analyst Nick Bubb points out the £585m valuation was well below the £1bn market cap DFS was reportedly hoping for and added the roadshow “has not been a swimming success”.

The DFS float will come just over a month after sofa specialist ScS listed on the stock exchange. Shares in ScS rose 8.6% to 190p on its first day back on the London Stock Exchange, signalling appetite is ripe for retail IPOs.