Yankee Candle Co, Madison Dearborn Partners' scented-candle maker unit, decided to forego attempts at a private sale, opting for an initial public offering.

Morgan Stanley will be heading the offering process, with Bank of America Corp. enlisted by Madison. The IPO may happen as early as 2013, added two of the sources.

Madison Dearborn-backed companies Boise Cascade Co. (BCC) and CDW Corp. will be among the companies to go public in 2013, joining Yankee Candle. Chicago-based Madison Dearborn plans to exit investments pursued before the financial crisis.

The firm initially placed a US $2 billion price tag on Massachussetts-based Yankee Candle. The attempt was scrapped later on when prospective buyers balked at that rate, said sources close to the deal in May.

Madison Dearborn purchased Yankee Candle in 2007 for US $1.6 billion including debt, Bloomberg data shows. The company suffered a drop in net gain of US $1.7 million in the first quarter, while sales impoved 5.4% to US $163.4 million during the period, as reflected by a company statement.