Jessica Alba's The Honest Company shooting for $1.5 billion valuation with IPO

By

Robin Driver

Published
Apr 27, 2021

The Honest Company, the Los Angeles-based beauty, baby and consumer goods company founded by actress Jessica Alba, said on Monday that it is aiming for a valuation of more than $1.5 billion with its upcoming U.S. IPO.

 
According to a report from CNBC, Honest is offering around 25.8 million shares priced between $14 and $17 each. The company plans to list its shares on the Nasdaq under the symbol “HNST.”
 
At the upper end of its IPO range, Honest would raise approximately $110 million, excluding proceeds from shares offered by stockholders.

Having founded the company in 2012, Alba now serves as Honest’s chief creative officer, while Nikolaos Vlahos, who joined the company in 2017, is its current CEO. Honest, which is backed by L Catterton, claims to avoid some 3,000 harmful ingredients as part of its mission to provide consumers with clean products.
 
According to a prospectus published when the company filed for its IPO earlier this month, Honest achieved $300.5 million in revenues in 2020, up 28% from $235.6 million in 2019. The company’s annual net loss came to $14.5 million.
 
Honest’s products fall into three categories, with its diapers and wipes segment having accounted for 63% of total 2020 revenues, while skin and personal care represented 26%, and household and wellness accounted for 11%.
 
As previously reported, the company expects to use the funds raised in its IPO for marketing and direct-to-consumer advertising, as well as for product and business expansion plans, including strategies for strengthening its online business and international presence.
 
Honest joins a fast-growing list of consumer brands to have filed for an IPO since the start of the year, with the likes of Poshmark, ThredUp, Dr Martens and The RealReal all having gone public over the course of the last four months.
 
Lead underwriters for Honest’s IPO include Morgan Stanley, JPMorgan and Jefferies.