The 15-year-old company, which also owns the PhotoBox, PaperShaker, Sticky9 and Hofmann brands, is understood to have engaged advisers at Wall Street bank Goldman Sachs to run an auction, the Sunday Telegraph reported yesterday.

Such a sale could fetch between £400m and £450m.

A stock market listing has been expected since the former head of eBay Europe, Douglas McCallum, was appointed as a non-executive chairman last month.

Furthermore chief executive and president Stan Laurent, has expressed an interest in securing equity to provide an acquisition pot and a firm ambition to join the “billion dollar club”.

Last year the company acquired Spanish €35m (£24.8m) turnover web-to-print competitor Hofmann for an undisclosed sum. It now operates in 22 countries. It bought Moonpig for £120m in 2011.

PhotoBox is also backed by venture capitalists Insight Venture Partners, Index Ventures, Highland Capital Partners, HarbourVest Partners, Quilvest Ventures and Greenspring Associates.

It reported sales of £175.3m and underlying EBITDA of £19.8m for 2014.

A spokesman for the company said it had no comment to make at this stage.