Italian Design Brands Makes A Strong Debut On Milan Stock Exchange

MILAN, Italy - - Italian Design Brands (IBD), a group of Italian furniture and lighting companies, saw its shares rise more than 3% on its first day of trading on the Milan stock exchange on Thursday.

The company, which includes brands such as Cappellini, Cassina and Poltrona Frau, offered newly issued shares worth 70 million euros ($77 million) in its initial public offering (IPO), which was more than twice oversubscribed.

At around 1000 GMT, IDB’s shares were up 3.3.% from the fixed price of 5.5. euros per share set in the IPO, valuing the company at about 220 million euros.

IDB’s Chief Executive Andrea Sasso said the IPO was a “milestone” for the company and that it would use part of the proceeds for new acquisitions. “We hope to bring in another company by year-end”, he told journalists.

IBD was founded in 2015 with the aim of creating a hub of Italian design excellence and innovation. The group has a portfolio of 14 brands, with a presence in more than 90 countries and over 1,000 points of sale. In 2022, IDB reported revenues of 230 million euros and an adjusted EBITDA of 22 million euros.

Citigroup and Equita acted as joint global coordinators and joint bookrunners for the IPO.