Birkenstock owner considers IPO at over $6 billion valuation

Fashionistas have chosen Birkenstock sandals. Koppitz-Bloomberg via Getty Images

L Catterton, the private equity firm backed by French luxury fashion house LVMH, is considering strategic options for Birkenstock, including an IPO, according to people familiar with the matter.

The legendary German sandal maker could be worth more than $6 billion in an IPO, one of the people said, asking not to be named as details are private.

The company is working with advisors including Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and JPMorgan Chase & Co. on a possible listing in the US, the people said. An IPO could happen this year or next, people said.

Deliberations are still ongoing and L. Catterton may opt out of either deal, the people added. Representatives from L Catterton, Birkenstock and Goldman Sachs, and JPMorgan declined to comment.

A transaction would come more than two years after the private equity firm and billionaire Bernard Arnault’s family investment firm acquired a majority stake in Birkenstock, valuing the company at $4.9 billion. The brothers Christian and Alex Birkenstock remained involved in the company.

The US IPO market is showing signs of emerging from a deep slump after restaurant chain Cava Group Inc. raised $366 million last month. Since then, the stock is up 78%.

A traditional brand founded almost 250 years ago, Birkenstock has evolved into a high fashion item, collaborating with luxury names such as Dior, Manolo Blahnik and Valentino. The style has also spawned a number of luxe takes from labels like Celine and Givenchy.

Birkenstocks have been sold in the US since 1966, after a woman named Margot Fraser spotted them while vacationing in Germany and began importing the product. Popular with bohemians and fashionistas, sandals experienced a major resurgence in the 1990s and 2000s when celebrities like Kate Moss and Heidi Klum started walking around in them.

More recently, Birkenstock has invested heavily in expanding its production sites in Germany. These include a new €120 million factory in Pasewalk, a town north of Berlin. The company employs around 5,500 people.