USA – Bobbie, the only mom-founded and led infant formula company in the US, has acquired Nature’s One, a 26-year-old pediatric nutrition company for an undisclosed sum.
According to San Francisco-based Bobbie, the deal will position the business as the third-largest fully integrated brand in the US.
The company, which promotes its European-style formula, is closing a US$70m Series C funding round to the acquisition led by a US$35m investment by PowerPlant Partners. Bobbie’s funding has totalled US$142m to date.
“The transaction will strengthen our domestic manufacturing capability by using Nature’s One’s newly-built facility, providing us with end-to-end control of manufacturing from raw material sourcing to production and canning,” Bobbie said.
Bobbie also noted that the company will continue to manufacture Nature’s One products under the Baby’s Only brand “for the foreseeable future.
“From inception, Bobbie’s mission has been centred around evolving the infant-formula industry and this acquisition is one of the biggest diversification moves in this very concentrated industry,” Laura Modi, Bobbie’s CEO and co-founder, said.
According to Nature’s One’s founder, Jay Highman, Nature’s One takes great pride in its evidence-based approach from the ingredients, to the state-of-the-art facility, and the team that has spent years to ensure our formula is safe, nutritious, and accessible for families.
“By handing the keys to Bobbie, it helps grow our reach and carries forward our message of purity,” he added.
Bobbie was founded by Modi and Sarah Hardy in 2019 to provide a European style of infant formula.
The company previously raised US$50 million in early 2022 and has since grown to serve over 5% of the non-WIC market and fed over 300,000 babies since launching its products two years ago.
Over the past year, the company has grown significantly. Bobbie grew overall 394% year over year, reaching $100 million in revenue and over 100 employees.
Modi said the year-over-year growth is 6 times faster than the rest of the infant formula market.
In addition, Bobbie’s formula launched at Target during the formula shortage, becoming “the first and only U.S.-manufactured infant formula to get on national retailer shelves” during that time, according to the company.
Earlier this year, Bobbie, banked on D2C as its major business model as it gears up to meet the demand for infant formula which is predictable and repetitive, making the model ideal for the distribution of its products although retail is another fluid option for the business.
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