Australia's largest online book retailer Booktopia is pushing ahead with plans for a $150 million float on the ASX in the face of increased competition from US giant Amazon.
Lead brokers Ord Minnett and Morgans are preparing to launch deal marketing and have organised site trips next week for fund managers to Booktopia's headquarters in Sydney's western suburbs, according to a report in The Australian Financial Review.
The IPO is expected to value Booktopia at up to $150 million, based on sales of $80 million in 2016 and projected sales of $100 million in 2017.
The Australian-owned online-only retail store has almost doubled its sales since the 2015 acquisition of its largest Australian competitor, Bookworld - the online retail arm of publisher Penguin Random House - which boosted its share of the local online book market from 62% to more than 80%.
CEO and major shareholder Tony Nash, who founded Booktopia 13 years ago with his brother, sister and brother-in-law, said in March: "There are no guarantees when you prepare for an IPO, but we are definitely doing everything to ensure...we're ready."
The family owns more than 90 per cent of the business. Nash said he planned to sell some of his shares but most of the capital raised in the IPO would be used to fund expansion.
Booktopia's 10,000-square-metre automated distribution centre at Homebush in Sydney holds 750,000 units with 110,000 titles in stock.
The company's website says its goal is to be a legitimate alternative to Amazon:
Did you know that Amazon currently sells $120 to $180 million of books and product per year to Australians? It doesn't pay any tax in Australia (not even GST), nor does it employ any Australians. Booktopia currently employs 55 Australians and we are very proud to do so, especially as we were still a team of two as recently as January 2007.