Vacuum cleaner retailer, Godfreys Group, has made a strong start to trade on the share market.

Godfreys shares hit the market at $2.88 at 1200 AEDT, above the $2.75 investors paid as part of the company’s $75 million initial public offering.

By 1225 AEDT the shares were at $2.85, giving the company a market capitalisation of almost $115 million.

Godfreys claims to be the world’s largest vacuum cleaner retailer, with 209 stores across Australia and New Zealand.

The company was founded during the Depression in 1931 by Godfrey Cohen, who sold vacuum cleaners in his father’s furniture shop.

Godfreys conducted the market listing to help fund its continued expansion.

“The markets we service are expected to experience long term growth as the number of Australian households increases by an estimated 38 per cent between 2010 and 2031,” chairman Rod Walker said in November.

AAP