Maiden offering for Thai home improvement retailer Boonthavorn

Boonthavorn Retail Corporation Public Company Ltd, an independent home improvement retailer in Thailand which has ties to industrial conglomerate Siam Cement Group (SCG), is looking to raise funds via an initial public offering. The 47-year-old company sells tiles, sanitary ware, kitchen utensils, lamps, lighting equipment and other home products along with integrated furniture through eponymous outlets as well as through stores owned by its joint venture with SCG.

In its filing submitted to the Stock Exchange of Thailand, Boonthavorn indicated that it was looking to sell up to 25 per cent of its shareholdings, comprising 320 million shares, to the public. The shares have a par value of 1 Thai baht (THB, 0.02 euros), indicating that even though it has not finalised the pricing for the shares offering, the company aims to be able to raise at least THB 320 mio from the listing exercise. Proceeds will be used “to provide capital for business expansion, to repay loans from commercial banks, [and] to provide working capital for business operations”.

The Thayanuwat family, which currently holds 78.5 per cent of Boonthavorn, will reduce its stake to 58.9 per cent following the share offer, while the interest of the Daophiset Group will see a dilution to seven per cent from 9.3 per cent, Boonthavorn disclosed. The company has yet to finalise the date of its market debut and at the time of writing is still awaiting the approval of the bourse for its plan.

Boonthavorn posted THB 10.082 bn (EUR 258 mio) in sales income from January to September 2023, up 8.5 per cent. Citing Euromonitor, the group said it held 22.1 per cent of the tile market and contributed 33.5 per cent of sanitary ware sales in Thailand in 2022.

As of September 2023, the company had 15 eponymous retail outlets. Through SCG Boonthavorn, its joint venture with SCG in which Boonthavorn holds a 49 per cent stake, the company had 33 branches operating under the SCG Home and SCG Boonthavorn brands.

The joint venture also holds majority shareholdings in companies in Cambodia and Vietnam, which operate one branch each of SCG Home. Apart from its brick-and-mortar stores, Boonthavorn also sells its products through its website as well as through online platforms Lazada, Shopee, Nocnoc and Line. It also engages in wholesale trade.

Boonthavorn may not be the only home improvement retailer that is set to make its market debut on the Thai bourse this year. Earlier media reports citing sources state that the Thai operation of Malaysian home improvement company Mr. DIY is also set to file for an IPO, with a target of conducting the public offer by the second half of the year.