Birkenstock to target $8.6 bn IPO valuation: media reports

German sandals maker Birkenstock will launch on the New York stock exchange on Wednesday in an initial public offering that values the company at $8.6 billion, according to multiple media reports.

Shares in the company, which was in the hands of the founding family until 2021, will be priced at $46, the Wall Street Journal, CNBC, and other media reported.

This would be in the middle of the company’s $44-49 target, giving it a market value of just over $8.6 billion.

Birkenstock started life as an orthopedic shoemaker, but has since shed its unflattering association with sock-and-sandal-wearing Germans to become a fashion accessory, as illustrated in the latest Hollywood blockbuster “Barbie.”

The stock flotation marks a new milestone, just two years after the Birkenstock heirs sold a majority stake to private equity group L Catterton and the family holding fund of French luxury magnate Bernard Arnault.

With hippies and stars alike making up its customers, Birkenstock recorded revenues of 1.11 billion euros ($1.17 billion) for the nine months ending June 30, up 21 percent from the same period a year earlier.

Net profit for the nine months was 129.1 million euros, down 20 percent from 103.3 million euros a year ago.

While other companies have shifted production to places where labor is generally cheaper, such as Asia, Birkenstock says 95 percent of its products are assembled in Germany.

Headquartered in the picturesque city of Linz am Rhein in western Germany, the company has several manufacturing sites in the country, and around 6,200 employees worldwide. (BSS/AFP)