An Impossible Foods IPO is seemingly imminent! The company is reportedly preparing to go public on the stock market within the next year, with an initial public offering (IPO) valued at around $10 billion. This means that shares of the California-based plant-based meat brand will be available for institutional and retail investors to buy and trade in the U.S. for the first time.
The estimated $10 billion IPO marks a significant jump in the growing brand’s projected value. In a private funding round conducted just last year, Impossible Foods was worth around $4 billion.
According to Reuters, should Impossible Foods go public in the coming months, it will likely happen in one of two ways. The brand may go public via an IPO within the next year. Or, it could go public through a merger with a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC)—a shell company that raises funds in an IPO with the aim of acquiring a private company.
Impossible Foods is currently working with a financial adviser to help manage discussions with SPACs after receiving offers at a lucrative valuation, Reuters reports. Though going public through a SPAC could dilute existing Impossible Foods shareholders more so than a traditional IPO, this method allows for less regulatory scrutiny coupled with more certainty with regards to the brand’s valuation.
Either way, Impossible Foods hasn’t officially announced that it is going public. According to sources, the company could pursue another private fundraising round instead. It has declined to comment on the speculation.
With high-profile investors including vegan tennis star Serena Williams as well as rapper Jay-Z, Impossible Foods certainly has no shortage of capital. In fact, the company has already raised $1.5 billion in the private market.
Is Impossible Foods Going Public?
So, is Impossible Foods going public? The short answer is: probably. News of the potential IPO does point to the company’s rapid growth over the years and expected high valuation. With plant-based meat sales on the rise in recent years, Impossible Foods has experienced tremendous growth since it was founded in 2011.
Impossible Foods’ undeniable standout is its Impossible Burger, which looks, cooks, and tastes similar to conventional beef. The plant-based patty launched in restaurants in 2016, and in 2019, it made its retail debut in Southern California Gelson’s Markets.
Now it’s sold at mainstream retailers, including Wegmans, Walmart, and Trader Joe’s. According to the company, the number of locations where Impossible Foods’ burgers are sold has increased in the past year from just 150 stores to more than 20,000 outlets. Impossible Foods has also entered into high-profile partnerships with brands such as Burger King and Disney.
Impossible Foods IPO Marks a Trend
News of Impossible Foods’ (likely) forthcoming IPO comes less than two months after Oatly announced its own IPO. The Swedish oat milk company could be valued, like Impossible Foods, at an estimated $10 billion.
Eat Beyond Global Holdings Inc. and Natural Order Acquisition Corp. announced their IPO intentions in November 2020, and vegan food tech company Eat Just revealed its plans to IPO last August.
Beyond Meat, which is perhaps Impossible Foods’ biggest rival, became the first-ever vegan company to IPO in May 2019. The brand was worth $13 billion just three months after it went public, and Beyond Meat shares are currently trading more than 400 percent above its initial IPO price.
