DISCOUNT retailer Poundland has announced plans for a stock market flotation next month which is expected to value the company at up to £750 million. The chain has seen sales rise as squeezed consumers hunt for a bargain, including well-heeled shoppers increasingly on the look-out for savings. Since opening its first store in Burton-on-Trent in 1990, Poundland has grown to nearly 500 outlets in the UK and plans to double that number. It also operates more than 30 stores under the Dealz brand in the Republic. Poundland describes itself as the largest single-price value general merchandise retailer in Europe, with revenues of £880.5m in the last financial year to the end of March, and underlying earnings of £45.5m.