UAE retailer LuLu is set to gauge IPO appetite next week

Abu Dhabi: LuLu Group International, which operates one of the Middle East’s largest hypermarket chains, plans to start gauging investor interest next week in preparation for what could be among the year’s biggest initial public offerings in the region.

The firm will hold roadshows starting Monday, according to people familiar with the matter, who declined to be identified as the information is private. Its owners are seeking a valuation of at least $5 billion in the Abu Dhabi listing, they said.
LuLu was valued at more than $5 billion in 2020 when an investment firm backed by a member of Abu Dhabi’s royal family bought a fifth of the company. Its owners are now looking to sell a further 25 per cent stake, according to another person familiar with the matter.

No final decisions have been made on terms of the deal, including the size. A representative for LuLu declined to comment.

The firm initially considered a dual listing in Riyadh, but now plans to sell shares only in Abu Dhabi. It has picked Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank PJSC, Citigroup Inc., Emirates NBD Capital and HSBC Holdings Plc to work on the offering, Bloomberg News has previously reported. Moelis & Co. is acting as an independent financial adviser.

Indian entrepreneur Yusuff Ali founded LuLu in the early 1990s during a years-long oil boom in the Gulf. The firm has annual revenue of about $8 billion and employs over 70,000 people in 26 countries across the Middle East, Asia, the US, and Europe, according to its website.
The potential share sale would follow high-end supermarket chain Spinneys 1961 Holding Plc’s Dubai listing. The stock had a relatively muted debut, and Spinneys shares are largely unchanged from their offer price.