The revival of investor appetite in London’s seemingly buoyant market for initial public offerings (IPOs) is set to see a rather unlikely return of Game Group to the stock market.
Game, the high street video retailer, was bought out of administration by private equity group OpCapita back in April 2012.
Much like HMV, the then loss making retailer was squeezed by rising costs and overstocking, while failing to keep pace with online retailers that were able to capture market share with cheaper prices.
In a little under two years since being taken over Game Group closed more than 300 stores, and the remaining Gamestation branded stores were taken under the Game brand.
A return to the stock market is now considered a possibility because of better cost management, strong Christmas trading, boosted by the launch of “next generation” game consoles Playstation 4 and Xbox One, and a buoyant equity market.
Reports suggest the private equity owners are pursuing a £300mln sale on the stock market.
Generally speaking, private equity groups are understood to be eyeing the newly revived stock market as an increasingly viable avenue to exit investments, so they can cash in and repay their investors after a number of years of sub-par returns.