Cleaner Godfreys going public

VACUUM and cleaning specialist Godfreys is understood to have hired Credit Suisse and Commonwealth Bank of Australia.

VACUUM and cleaning specialist Godfreys is understood to have hired Credit Suisse and Commonwealth Bank of Australia to work with it as it prepares for an initial public offering that is expected to raise upwards of $100 million.

The firm joins a growing list of founders or private equity owners keen to take advantage of strong market conditions to raise capital. Cinema operator Hoyts, aged care operator Regis Healthcare and online property marketing company PropertyGuru are among a growing list of companies seeking to list either later this year or early next year.

Godfreys, which operates nearly 200 stores across Australia and New Zealand, is owned by a clutch of banks and hedge funds.

The business was acquired by Pacific Equity Partners and Unitas Capital in 2006 for around $300 million, but the two private equity firms exited under a debt-for-equity swap deal in 2011, while the company suffered through tough retail conditions.

Despite undertaking a capital restructure and replacing management in 2009, the turnaround at Godfreys had been slow under the private equity owners, prompting their eventual exit.

Godfreys owns the Wertheim, Pullman and Dustflo brands and also has exclusive rights to the Hoover brand in Australia and New Zealand.

The Melbourne-based retailer grew from a single shopfront during the Great Depression to become one of the world’s largest vacuum cleaner chains.