Topic: How To Invest

Q: Pat. Can I get your opinion on the new Savers Value Village IPO. My wife shops at Value Village all the time. Thanks.

Article Excerpt

A: Savers Value Village Inc., $25.78, symbol SVV on New York (Shares outstanding: 160.5 million; Market cap: $4.1 billion; www.valuevillage.com), is the largest for-profit thrift operator in the U.S. and Canada. It operates 152 stores in the U.S. and 153 in Canada. It also has a presence in Australia with 12 stores operating under several banners—Savers, Value Village, Village des Valeurs, Unique and 2nd Ave. The company first sold shares to the public and began trading on June 29, 2023, at $18 a share. The shares have already moved up 43.2%. Savers Value Village is a company that runs for-profit thrift stores. It buys much of its merchandise from local nonprofits that have had merchandise donated to them. This helps the local nonprofits, which cycle that money back into the community. Bill Ellison founded the company in 1954 when he opened the first store in San Francisco’s Mission District. His father was a career officer with the Salvation Army and managed their second-hand…