J.Crew rumored to be in talks for 2014 IPO

US-based fashion retailer, J.Crew Group Inc., is said to be having discussions with banks as it explores options for an initial public offering. Sources close to the matter told Bloomberg that the fashion retailer, owned by Leonard Green & Partners LP and TPG Capital, is considering floatin

on the US stock market sometime this year.

J.Crew initial value of 5 billion dollars

One source indicated that with J.Crew's current amount of 451 international stores that bring in annual revenues of 2.4 billion dollars in sales, the fashion retailer could reach a valuation of 5 billion dollars.

This

speculation continues on from last November, when another inside source revealed that Leonard Green and TPG were considering launching a future IPO or selling off the fashion company to another private equity owner within the next few months.

In November 2010, J.Crew Group Inc. agreed to be acquired by TPG and Leonard Green, who paid 43.50 dollars a share, nearly 3 billion dollars. The initial valuation for J.Crew today is nearly double what Leonard Green and TPG paid for J.Crew three years ago, highlighting how the fashion retailer has grown in the recent years.

Jonathan De Mello, retail and retail property expert, tweeted that it is the “perfect time for J.Crew to be considering an IPO, with US retail stocks riding high now”. He added that an IPO would definitely “double TPG/L Green's initial investment”.

J.Crew has been busy expanding it retail strategy overseas, with a flagship store opening in London last November and new stores opening in Hong Kong this spring. The company previously revealed in a regulatory filling that revenues were predicted to have increased 9 percent to 2.4 billion dollars for the fiscal year 2013 to February 1.

The J.Crew Group Inc. previously went public in 2006, and was said to be one of the strongest initial public offerings of the year. However, the company was heavily in debt at the time and was using the majority of the proceeds for the stock offering to pay down half of its debt as growth and revenues slowed, before TPG and Leonard Green acquired the company in 2010.

The fashion retailer is also currently searching for a 1.57 billion dollar loan to refinance its debt, and has asked Goldmans Sachs Group Inc and Bank of America Corp to help with the undertaking, according to internal sources.

Photos: J.Crew A/W 14 show, J.Crew online store.