Budget retailer Poundland has said that it will float on the London Stock Exchange this March. The sale is expected to raise between £700 million and £800 million.

The move is just one of the high profile retail flotations anticipated this year, with Pets at Home, Fat Face, House of Fraser and Boohoo.com all expected to be put on the market later this year as the economy improves.

Poundland is the largest single-price general merchandise retailer in Europe by both sales and number of stores with an estate of over 500 outlets across the UK and Ireland.

Jim McCarthy, CEO of Poundland, said of the IPO: "The value retail sector has been through a period of profound change in scale, customer perception and financial performance.  The sector is now a mainstream feature of the UK retail market and Poundland has been a central architect of that change.  Our single price point and our amazing value are appealing to an increasingly broad section of shoppers with 22% of our UK customers now coming from the AB demographic.

“We have built a track record of delivering strong, profitable growth and I believe we have many more opportunities ahead, underpinned by our trusted brand, strong supplier relationships, differentiated value proposition and our well-invested and scalable infrastructure.  Our success in Ireland - where we trade under the Dealz fascia - demonstrates that we have the capability to generate positive financial returns in new geographies quickly and underlines the potential in the business for further international growth in addition to our plans for continued rapid growth in the UK."