Bobo's Hires Investment Bank, Lucky Energy Raises $14M ⚡️

GM and Happy Saturday, folks. Here’s what we’re covering this morning:

• Fresh Del Monte buys Avolio 🥑

• August brand refresh 💯

• Reed’s expands into soda 🫧

• Codex Chocolate launches 🍫

• Electrolit continues to dominate 💧

Bobo’s Hires Investment Bank 👩‍🍳

Bobo’s, a Colorado-based manufacturer of oat bars and other better-for-you snacks, has hired William Blair as the company explores a sale. According to a fairly credible rumor, a deal for Bobo’s has already been inked and they’re just waiting to announce it.

Bobo’s got its start in 2003 when Beryl Stafford and her 14-year-old daughter began baking oat bars and selling them at cafes throughout Boulder. The company has come a long way since then. Bobo’s now operates a 125,000-square-foot production facility outside of Denver and hired CPG veteran T.J. McIntyre as CEO.

Though oat bars remain their bread and butter, Bobo’s has expanded into a number of new categories including protein bars, bites, fig bars, and PB&Js (think Uncrustables but shelf-stable). This year, Bobo’s forecasts $115M in revenue and an EBITDA margin around 10%.

Based on what we know about Bobo’s numbers and current exit multiples, we can expect Bobo’s to trade for between $250M and $300M. If a private equity firm doesn’t scoop up Bobo’s first — it’s an affordable asset with a lot of runway left for growth — who’s the most likely strategic to buy them? Here’s a list of likely suspects: 

General Mills - CEO Jeff Harmening teased an acquisition spree in 2024 and the company is poised to expand its better-for-you snack portfolio. General Mills has spent well over $10B growing its pet food portfolio since 2018, but they haven’t acquired a cereal or snack brand in over a decade. Bobo’s is both an affordable and accretive acquisition target for General Mills. Additionally, Bobo’s is a brand that could seamlessly extend into complementary categories like cereal, granola, and breakfast mixes.

Flowers Foods - The bread maker already shelled out nearly $800M to acquire BFY snack brand Simple Mills earlier this year. They’re also pushing brands like Wonder and Dave’s Killer Bread into the snack category, so snacking is clearly a strategic focus. Bobo’s would be a no-brainer bolt-on acquisition for Flowers Foods. 

Conagra - Their recent snack acquisitions include FATTY Smoked Meat Sticks and Angie’s BOOMCHICKAPOP, both better-for-you snack players. Terms of the FATTY deal weren’t disclosed but Angie’s cost Conagra $250M, so Bobo’s is in their wheelhouse.

Bobo’s is probably too small for the likes of Mars and Mondelez, but Hershey could be in play given the reasonable price tag.

Deals 💰

Mergers & Acquisitions 

• Fresh Del Monte, a vertically integrated producer of fresh-cut fruits and vegetables, acquired a majority stake in Avolio, a Ugandan supplier of avocado oil. This acquisition fits Fresh Del Monte’s long-term strategy of growing its specialty ingredients portfolio. Food Dive

• Marquez Brothers International (MBI), a family-owned producer and distributor of Hispanic foods, has acquired the parent company of YoGusto, one of the leading drinkable yogurt brands in the Southeastern U.S. YoGusto operates a manuacturing facility in Clewiston, FL and a distribution center in Miami. PR Newswire 

Fundraising

• Lucky Energy, an Austin-based purveyor of energy drinks, raised over $14M in a funding round led by Maveron. Other investors include DMG Ventures, Second Sight Ventures, Imaginary Ventures, Sugar Capital, and a handful of others. Richard Laver, the co-founder of Kate Farms, launched Lucky Energy in 2023. If anyone has an idea on Lucky Energy’s revenue, please hit me up. PR Newswire 

• Alpyn Beauty, a skincare brand that uses clinical actives and wild-harvested plant ingredients, raised $2.5M in equity funding from undisclosed investors on March 28th. The company is based in Jackson Hole and retails at Sephora, Credo, and Bluemercury. SEC

Create Viral Street Interviews For Your Brand 📸

203 Media is a content agency that specializes in viral street interviews for brands like BRĒZ, Goli, Pretzelized, Laundry Sauce, and Cheers Health. 

203 Media has facilitated over 4,000 street interviews for a variety of brands over the past 10 months. The company has hosts in Miami, Nashville, and NYC who film street interviews daily. Here’s one of their recent street interviews for Pretzelized, one of the fastest-growing snack brands in the U.S.

Check out their website here or schedule a call with the founder today.

What’s New 🤩

Apparel, Cosmetics, and Wellness

• Sustainable period care brand August revealed a fantastic brand refresh. The updated packaging is lighter, more lifestyle-oriented, and the callouts are much clearer. Great work from the talented folks at Day Job. Instagram

• Birkenstock opened a concept store in Zhangyuan, a historical district of Shanghai. The store originally opened as a three month pop-up last year but it’s now a permanent location for the German footwear maker. PR Newswire

• K18 opened a pop-up at Harrods as the haircare brand prioritizes growth in the UK. The Industry

Food, Beverage, and Alcohol

• Supplements brand Supa Power just launched a 21g protein shot. It looks like they’re using the same BLG whey protein as Genius Shot, another protein shot brand that launched earlier this month. Supa Power

• Speaking of shots…UK-based supplements brand Per4m launched a line of hydration shots. Each shot contains electrolytes, taurine, coconut water, and zero sugar. Stack3d

• Big Sipz, one of the fastest-growing RTD brands in the U.S., partnered with Zero Studios on a sleek packaging refresh. Instagram

• Publicly traded beverage company Reed’s is expanding into the modern soda category with four flavors: Berry Bubbly, Strawberry Vanilla, Ginger Lemongrass, and Root Beer. Reed’s is best known for its craft ginger beverages and mixers. Twitter

• Codex Chocolate is a new player in the premium, better-for-you chocolate category. Each chocolate square contains 4g of protein, 3g of fiber, and only 2g of sugar. They really nailed the packaging too 👇 Codex Chocolate

• More flavor licensing in the snack aisle…Tillamook Country Smoker partnered with Mike’s Hot Honey to release a sweet & spicy beef stick. PR Newswire

• There’s a new canned tequila cocktail brand called Olé Cocktail Co. They launched with four flavors: Margarita, Paloma, Chili Mango, and Tequila Sunrise. PR Newswire

• Hip Pop, a UK-based kombucha and better-for-you soda brand, unveiled a clean new look. BevNET

Data 🖥️

• Celebrity haircare brand TYPEBEA is now the best-selling hair serum at Sephora U.S. Instagram

• Electrolit continues to post impressive volume gains. For the four week period ending on March 8th, Electrolit volume jumped over 34%. PRIME volume, on the other hand, continues to collapse. Twitter

Distribution News 🚚

• Luxury boxed wine brand Juliet launched at Costco & Safeway.

• Cloud Haircare launched nationwide at Walmart.

• Painterland Sisters is now available at Jewel-Osco.