Report: Dollar General to make public offering

New York City Dollar General is getting ready to make a return foray to the public sector, with private equity firm Kohlberg Kravis Roberts, operator of KKR Financial Holdings, preparing the company for an initial public offering, the Wall Street Journal reported.

KKR is expected to serve as a lead underwriter on the deal, along with Goldman Sachs and Citigroup, according to the report. It would be the first time KKR underwrote one of its IPOs.

Dollar General was purchased by an investment group that included affiliates of KKR and Goldman Sachs in July 2007.

Similar to some other discounters, Dollar General has enjoyed strong sales during the recession as frugal-minded consumers flocked to its stores. For its most recent quarter, ended May 1, the chain’s sales increased 16% to $2.78 billion from $2.4 billion, while same-store sales jumped 13%.