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SCMP Reporter

Bawang International, a mainland herbal shampoo manufacturer and retailer, plans to meet investors today for its  US$250 million initial public offering  slated for early next month.
The company secured approval for its listing from  Hong Kong regulators last week   and will start pre-marketing today  by sending out pre-deal research published by syndicated analysts.  
A roadshow to market the company to investors will get under way  on June 15 and  end on June 25, according to a pre-marketing sales memo obtained by fund managers. 
Pricing is expected to be  set on June 26 and trading starts on July 3. 
Morgan Stanley and HSBC are the joint bookrunners of the offering.
Bawang will sell 700 million new shares, or 25 per cent of its enlarged share capital.
It has given the bookrunners the right to sell an additional 105 million new shares if the issue attracts  strong demand.
Compared with foreign giants such as Procter & Gamble, the homegrown brand Bawang has a shorter presence in the market.  But it has attracted consumer interest by hiring movie  star Jackie Chan to endorse the product's effectiveness in eliminating dandruff and preventing hair loss.
Earlier this year, it targeted women  by hiring another  star, singer Faye Wong, and developing new product lines. 
'Investors will  welcome this offering due to its recognised brand name. The new spokeswoman  Faye Wong and  a new female product line will  help draw strong attention  from various  investors,' said a source. 
The proceeds of the listing will go towards new product development, distribution network expansion, potential acquisitions and general working capital.
Guangzhou-based Bawang is the mainland's fourth-largest shampoo  maker and retailer  and focuses on herbal brands. 
Its shampoo products  made up 95 per cent of total sales  last year and  had a 3.5 per cent market share in the first half of  that year, ranking it eighth in the  market,  data  from CTR Market Research shows. 
The mainland shampoo market is dominated by P&G, whose Rejoice, Head & Shoulders and Pantene brands control about  50 per cent of the market. 
Bawang is the top homegrown brand in the CTR rankings,  after  expanding rapidly in the last three years and launching 36 new products during the period.
In 2007, Bawang invested  an undisclosed  sum to build a 325 mu  (21.7 hectares) herb growing and research and development centre in Guangzhou. 
Earlier this year, it planned to set up another large-scale herb growing centre  in Luoding, also in Guangdong province.
In a lather 
Shampoo maker Bawang International is among a host of mainland firms  planning IPOs before the third  quarter - when the number of listings is expected to increase 
Fundraising targets of IPOs before the third quarter (US$) 
Lumena Resources Corp (Thenardite producer, June): 191m 
Bawang International (Shampoo manufacturer, July): 250m 
361? (Sportswear retailer, July): 200m 
BBMG Corp (Cement maker, July): 500m 
Qinfa Group (Coal trader, July): 65m 
China Vanadium Titano-Magnetite Mining (iron ore miner, September): 150m
Fujian Peak Group (Sportswear retailer, September): 250m



Shampoo maker Bawang begins pre-marketing of US$250m IPO