Publications
Partners
Once Steinhoff has put to bed its acquisition of French furniture retailer Conforama, its next step will be to consider an offshore listing. Group CEO Markus Jooste would like to first complete a year with Conforama as part of Steinhoff. However, he’s not opposed to the idea of a European listing, considering that after acquiring Conforama, Steinhoff will become Europe’s second biggest furniture retailer.
Rob Forsyth, head of industrials at Investec Asset Management, says Steinhoff doesn’t have to list in Europe because it doesn’t need money – unless it wants to chase another big acquisition. Nevertheless, he says a European listing would make it easy for Steinhoff to grow its offshore operations out of the fragmented European furniture market. In addition, continental Europe isn’t spoilt for listed furniture groups.
Mariza Nel, Steinhoff’s corporate affairs director, says although the group has considered listing in Europe, it hasn’t really considered the country in which it would eventually list or how it would do so. Steinhoff has significant operations in Germany and Britain, where it operates retail chains Poco and Harveys respectively. With the acquisition of Conforama, Steinhoff will dominate in France.
“Our European business is big enough to list anywhere in Europe,” says Nel. She says the group – when it’s ready – may consider London, Frankfurt or Paris or list in more than one European country. Forsyth thinks Steinhoff – as a holding company – is likely to remain on the JSE but separately list its European operations on more than one bourse.
Nel says Steinhoff is basically a two business company that would be easy to break up along geographical lines should the group feel it could accelerate growth by doing so. In Europe, Steinhoff is mainly a furniture company. In southern Africa it’s largely an industrials conglomerate. “As time passes we’ll consider if it would be best to separate the two businesses, but we haven’t reached that stage in our thinking,” says Nel.
The Conforama deal is still awaiting final approval from France’s competition authorities. Steinhoff is confident it will go through, possibly by month-end.
Rob Forsyth, head of industrials at Investec Asset Management, says Steinhoff doesn’t have to list in Europe because it doesn’t need money – unless it wants to chase another big acquisition. Nevertheless, he says a European listing would make it easy for Steinhoff to grow its offshore operations out of the fragmented European furniture market. In addition, continental Europe isn’t spoilt for listed furniture groups.
Mariza Nel, Steinhoff’s corporate affairs director, says although the group has considered listing in Europe, it hasn’t really considered the country in which it would eventually list or how it would do so. Steinhoff has significant operations in Germany and Britain, where it operates retail chains Poco and Harveys respectively. With the acquisition of Conforama, Steinhoff will dominate in France.
“Our European business is big enough to list anywhere in Europe,” says Nel. She says the group – when it’s ready – may consider London, Frankfurt or Paris or list in more than one European country. Forsyth thinks Steinhoff – as a holding company – is likely to remain on the JSE but separately list its European operations on more than one bourse.
Nel says Steinhoff is basically a two business company that would be easy to break up along geographical lines should the group feel it could accelerate growth by doing so. In Europe, Steinhoff is mainly a furniture company. In southern Africa it’s largely an industrials conglomerate. “As time passes we’ll consider if it would be best to separate the two businesses, but we haven’t reached that stage in our thinking,” says Nel.
The Conforama deal is still awaiting final approval from France’s competition authorities. Steinhoff is confident it will go through, possibly by month-end.
