GERMAN sandal-maker Birkenstock today set a price for its initial public offering of stock at between US$44 and US$49 (RM206 and RM230), a range that could see the company raise up to US$1.58 billion.

Around 32.2 million ordinary shares will be put on the New York Stock Exchange in the IPO, the company said in a regulatory filing.

Known for its wide-strapped sandals with cork and latex soles, Birkenstock was founded in 1774 to make orthopaedic shoes. 

By 1897, Konrad Birkenstock had made the first flexible sole fitting the contours of the feet. 

The sandals were brought to the United States in the 1960s, where they were adopted by hippies who took to their no-frills comfort but also saw their utilitarian look as an anti-fashion badge.

But any “unfashionable” association with sock-and-sandal wearing Germans is a thing of the past – they have become standard footwear for celebrities, and the company has launched collaborations with top brands.

The company remained in the hands of the founding family until 2021, when it sold a majority stake to private equity group L. Catterton and the family holding fund of French luxury magnate Bernard Arnault. – AFP, October 2, 2023.