Laird Superfood Acquires Picky Bars for $12M

Plant-based food company Laird Superfood announced today it has acquired Bend, Oregon-based snack brand Picky Bars in a $12 million cash and stock deal.

The transaction, which closed May 3, is the company’s first acquisition after its IPO last fall. The deal expands the company’s reach into new snacking categories while offering opportunities for growth into new retail channels.

Founded in 2010 by professional endurance athletes Jesse Thomas (CEO), Lauren Fleshman and Stephanie Rothstein Bruce, Picky offers plant-based energy bars, granola, oatmeal, nut butter and pancake mixes — all marketed toward fueling performance. The brand focuses largely on e-commerce, with a 9,000-member subscription service, as well as distribution through Whole Foods, New Seasons and independent grocery and sports retailers such as REI.

Picky Bar generated revenue of $4.1 million in 2020, reporting 42% growth compared to 2019, Laird CFO Valerie Ells noted in an investor call today discussing the deal. With the acquisition, Laird is updating its own 2021 net sales estimate from $42 million to $46 million.

Moving forward, Thomas will lead Picky’s operations as VP, while Fleshman and Bruce will serve as strategic advisors, according to a post on Picky’s website. Fleshman will also serve on Laird’s Environmental, Social and Governance committee.

“We expect this acquisition to accelerate our already strong growth by expanding our distribution, enhancing our product development, and creating even more jobs in our local community,” Thomas said. “Overall, coming together with LSF will increase the positive impact we can have on our communities and the world at large.”

Laird CEO Paul Hodge noted on the call that Picky shares Laird’s commitment to being “mission-driven,” as well as similar consumer bases. Both Oregon-based companies were founded by professional athletes.

“Picky Bars aligns with our core values of trust and authenticity and our product ethos prioritizing high performance and sustainability, not just for athletes, but for everyone in everyday life,” Hodge said in a release. “This is an exceptional foundation to build on the many synergies we anticipate from this acquisition.”

Picky’s snack portfolio offers several opportunities for Laird, which expanded into snacking with the launch of Pili Nuts and Harvest Dates in 2020, Hodge said on the webcast. He added that Picky Bars are a “perfect fit” strategically for the company, with offerings that complement Laird’s beverage-focused offerings of mixes and creamers.

Mike Quinones, SVP of Growth and Marketing at Laird, said the company sees significant opportunities to disrupt the bar category with a “truly natural whole food bar.” He added that the brand’s granolas and oatmeals fill out the “morning ritual” that Laird already targets with its product portfolio.

The price point of Picky’s snack bar also supports expansion into new retail segments such as convenience and drug stores, Hodge said.

Laird’s offerings are currently sold in 7,000 retailers, including Whole Foods, Safeway and Sprouts.

While Laird and Picky have similar target audiences, Hodge said the current consumer overlap is less than 1%, which “creates a great opportunity” to introduce their respective consumer bases to each other’s products. Laird will first sell Picky’s top performing products on its e-commerce platform, and plans to add Picky’s full portfolio to its website within the next six months.

Laird will apply its “growth accelerating playbook,” which includes email marketing and social media, to expand Picky’s reach and drive consumer trial, Quinones said. The goal is to reach “total brand integration” in the next year, with Picky products transitioning to the Laird brand identity, he added.

The company expects the products with new branding to hit retailers within the next year, Hodge said.

Picky currently uses a co-packer to manufacture its products. However, Hodge said the Laird plans to integrate Picky’s manufacturing within its facilities over time, which will improve the brand’s margins.

Thomas added that the acquisition will offer Picky additional resources for R&D and more control over its supply chain.

“Our goal is to amplify, enhance and expand what Picky has built with long-term growth in mind with new categories being brought to the Laird Superfood brand platform,” Quinones said.

Hodge said the company “views itself as a builder versus aggregator,” but chose to acquire Picky rather than develop new snack products itself because it would ultimately “cut years off our time to market in these categories.” Looking ahead to future opportunities, Hodge also announced that the company has promoted sales VP Jamin Kerner to director of corporate development to manage and seek out future M&A opportunities.

“We are very open minded to and well positioned to become an accelerator for potentially highly accretive opportunities like this for investors,” Hodge said. “We understand this is our first acquisition and we are committed to getting it right, proving our playbook works well for other potentially accretive M&A deals that align with the Laird Superfood vision.”