The maternity dressmaker Shanghai UKI Industry and Trade Co Ltd said it plans to go public in three years, in line with the company's massive expansion plans in a growing niche market.

If the initial public offering bid is successful, the company will be the first maternity clothing manufacturer to go public in China.

"We will make every effort to get listed on the growth enterprise market or small and medium-sized enterprises board within three years," said Shanghai UKI President Zhao Pu. "It is quite different from years before, when women were not conscious of their appearance during pregnancy. Now pregnant women want to be as charming as they were before pregnancy, which has been an impetus to the maternity dress industry."

UKI earned 30 million yuan (US$4.5 million) in revenue for the first three quarters of the year, compared with 20 million yuan for 2009. The company has 160 chain stores and 200 franchised outlets in China.

"We plan to notch up annual revenue of 80 million yuan, and expand the number of chain stores and franchised outlets to 1,000 in two or three years," Zhao said.

Analysts said UKI's move aims to cash in on a growing niche market.

"Due to 20-something mothers' growing awareness of beauty and the high birthrate in recent years, the maternity dress market has great development potential. Its market size in terms of revenue is about 3.5 billion yuan and will increase to 10 billion yuan in three years," said Wu Jiangning, chief executive officer of the Tu Mu Fang Yuan consulting company, based in Shanghai.

The growing Chinese market has attracted foreign investors. Zhao said that a major United States-based maternity dress company has expressed its willingness to cooperate with UKI to explore the Chinese market. He didn't reveal the name of the company.

Another analyst said the market is consolidating quickly and will nurture a few well-known brands in several years, while large players such as UKI may benefit from the trend.

"Consolidation is beginning, as larger companies are developing their brands to win consumer loyalty," said Zhao Xianmei, a senior consultant of Hejun Consulting Group based in Beijing.

UKI is best known in China for its flagship brand - Shiyue Mami, which can be translated as "10-month pregnancy".

(China Daily November 21, 2010)