Melbourne-based internet garment printer Redbubble is preparing for a $268m listing on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) on May 17, with its simple, print-focused business model. The ecommerce business allows artists to monetise their designs by uploading them to the Redbubble website, where consumers choose a design for a product, like a t-shirt, pillowcase or cap. Redbubble then prints them on clothing and homewares. According to its website a man’s t-shirt with a printed design retails for about $28. Redbubble will list on the ASX with an issue price of $1.33 and a market value reaching almost $268m, some 40 per cent more than Blue Star parent IVE at its launch in December, which saw the company valued at around $178m.

Redbubble founder: Martin Hosking

Redbubble is expected to raise $30m from the issue of new shares and another $9.8m from existing investors selling down their holdings. The company was founded in 2006 by friends Martin Hosking, Paul Vanzella and Peter Styles in Melbourne. It now also has offices in San Francisco. Hosking says the company is still in an investment stage. Last financial year, the company had a net loss of $6.3m which is expected to treble to an $18m loss in 2016, and then reduce to a $6m loss in 2017. It is the global nature of the business that Hosking and his team believe will be attractive to investors, he says, “We are not constrained by Australia.” Hosking says Redbubble sets itself apart from competitors because retail investors can easily understand its product. The company has also tipped itself to overtake the success of its US rival, Etsy. The company expects to expand to Germany, France and Spain following its listing.

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