Europe’s leading prestige beauty retailer, Douglas Group, made a disappointing return to the stock market on Thursday, March 21 in Frankfurt. After a decade-long absence, the group decided to re-enter the stock exchange with the goal of reducing its debt.
Douglas priced its initial public offering (IPO) at 26 euros (US$28.3) per share on Tuesday. However, the stock opened at 25.50 euros on Thursday and closed at 23.06 euros by the end of the day, marking an eleven percent drop from the issue price. This price values the Düsseldorf-headquartered company at around 2.5 billion euros.
“The deleveraging associated with the IPO will increase our financial flexibility and provide additional support for our successful development,” said Douglas Chief Executive Sander van der Laan earlier this month.
The group’s shares were withdrawn from the Stock Exchange in 2013 by its previous co-owners, the Advent fund and the Kreke family. In 2015, the group was sold to CVC Capital Partners, which held 84% of the shares before the IPO. The free float now stands at around 32%, with CVC Capital Partners and the Kreke family holding 54.4% and 10.2% of the shares, respectively.
Both private owners have committed to injecting around 300 million euros to strengthen the group’s balance sheet.
Douglas, known for selling perfumes, skincare, and makeup products in 22 European countries through brands like Douglas, Nocibé, parfumdreams, and Niche Beauty, closed nearly 20% of its stores in 2021 to focus on boosting online sales.
In the 2022/23 financial year, Douglas saw a 12.1% increase in sales, reaching 4.1 billion euros, and achieved a net profit of 17 million euros after years of losses. The company aims to hit the 5 billion sales mark by 2026 and has plans to expand its store network by adding over 200 stores and upgrading or refurbishing more than 400 stores by the end of the 2025/26 financial year.
