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From July 9, vegan confectionery brand Yumy Bear will begin trading on the Canadian Securities Exchange (CSE). Founded by serial entrepreneur Erica Williams, the low-sugar candy company has set sights on an IPO valued at US$50 million.
Guilt-free candy
Fitness coach and athlete Erica Williams came up with the idea of Yumy Bear to address the gap for healthier and affordable premium candy alternatives in the market. The Vancouver-based brand creates low-sugar vegan gummy candies made from plant-based ingredients.
Traditional gummy candies use gelatin to develop their products. It is developed from animals’ skin, tendons, and ligaments. However, Yumy Bear replaces this gelatin with pectin, a sugar acid derived from galactose. According to the University of California, it is extracted from “apple pomace and citrus peels”. It also helps thicken the jellies.
The products do not contain any artificial sweeteners or sugar alcohols. To make its gummy candies soft, the company employs a proprietary formulation process.
Traditional gummies usually contain 32g sugar, zero fibre and 185 calories. Compared to this, each serving of Yumy Bear has three grams of sugar, 21 grams of fiber, and 115 calories.
The candies are available in peach and strawberry-kiwi flavors. The company has priced its bags around US$1 to $1.50 cheaper than its rivals.
On her website, Williams shared how she came up with the idea and why making them vegan was important for her. “Using my kitchen as a starting point, I got to work experimenting with high-quality ingredients to create a unique gummy candy that is delicious and optimal for health-conscious people that also care about animal welfare. After over a year of rigorous testing, Yumy Bear was created and in the hands of happy friends, family, clients and loyal customers!”
First vegan gummy candy to go public
According to research, the jellies and gummies industry is a multibillion-dollar sector predicted to soar at a 3.5% CAGR between 2019 and 2025. In 2019, the sugar-free confectionery market in the U.S. was valued at US$1.88 billion.
Yumy Bear is looking to disrupt both these markets by listing itself on the CSE inviting people to invest in the company under the symbol “YUMY.”
Since its inception in 2020, the brand has secured over US$2.5 million in an oversubscribed funding round. Through its IPO it hopes to attract new investors and simultaneously earn US$1M in sales by the end of 2021. In addition, it will look to expand to other markets in 2022 like the U.S.
Apart from this, the company is involved in several sustainable initiatives. For instance, it is planning a beach clean-up at the end of July to collect garbage and recyclables. It has even partnered with the Northern Lights Wildlife Society where a portion of its sales goes towards providing young, injured, and orphaned wildlife a safe and healthy environment.
Other vegan companies like plant-based egg brand Eat Just is planning to go public with a US$3 billion IPO and alternative milk giant Oatly just went public with a US$10.1 billion valuation.
Lead image courtesy of Yumy Bear.
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