IPO candidate Zalando seeks same structure as listed German companies

FRANKFURT, Dec 11 (Reuters) - German online fashion retailer Zalando, viewed as a prime candidate for a stock market flotation, is applying to change its legal structure to that typically used by German listed companies.

The company said the change to an Aktiengesellschaft (AG) limited company is part of structural changes to reflect the size of the group, which has grown from a start-up five years ago into Europe's largest online fashion retailer.

"But this does make the option of an initial public offering (IPO) more realistic," a company spokesman told Reuters.

Rubin Ritter, managing director of Zalando, which competes with London-listed ASOS (Other OTC: ASOMY - news) , said in October that an IPO was an option for the future, but not an immediate priority.

The spokesman said the change to an AG would also speed up the decision-making process and make it easier to attract new investors.

Zalando has recently brought on board more new investors, such as the Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan (OTPP) and Danish fashion magnate Anders Holch Povslen.

Switching to an AG would require Zalando to have a supervisory board and an executive board. The six-person supervisory board would be chaired by Mia Livfors, CEO of Zalando's biggest shareholder, Kinnevik Investment AB , the spokesman said.

Berlin-based Zalando doubled its sales to 1.15 billion euros ($1.6 billion) in 2012 and reported sales up more than 70 percent in the first six months of 2013 to 809 million euros.