HelloFresh IPO: Meal kit firm wants a €1.5bn valuation

Cookery kit maker HelloFresh is hoping to raise up to €357m (£318m) when it floats on the stock market, implying a valuation of €1.5bn.

The German food firm, the majority of which is owned by e-commerce investor Rocket Internet, plans to sell as many as 31m new shares within a price range of €9 – €11.50.

HelloFresh, which delivers recipes and sets of ingredients in 10 countries, including the UK, the US, Canada and Australia, is going ahead with its initial public offering (IPO) plans despite a recent 50 per cent decline in te shares of US rival Blue Apron since its flotation in June.

The German startup only recently put an IPO back on the table, after calling off a planned float two years ago when investors rejected a higher valuation.

Yesterday, the company said its stock will start trading on the Frankfurt stock exchange on 2 November. HelloFresh is planning to use proceeds from the float to invest in its growth strategy.

“We have seen tremendous success and market share gains in the US in the last few quarters. We now intend to use the proceeds from the IPO to continue expanding our market share and become the clear No. 1 player on the US market in 2018,” said chief executive Dominik Richter.