Allbirds Makes Wall Street Debut and Surges 90%

Eco-friendly shoe maker Allbirds made its debut in the market on Wednesday, soaring 90% as Wall Street welcomed the company.

The company, known for its eco-friendly wool sneakers and slip-ons, started trading Wednesday on the Nasdaq exchange under the ticker symbol “BIRD.”

Shares opened their first trade at $21.21, after the company priced 20.2 million shares a day earlier at $15 apiece.

With being public, Allbirds is hoping to attract investors who favor companies that put an emphasis on sustainability.

On Wednesday the company was able to grab a valuation of roughly $4.1 billion. Shares closed the day at $28.64 apiece, up nearly 91%.

“We did get exposure to a lot more pockets of capital as a result of the fact that people saw the genuine and authentic leadership that we’re putting forward on ESG,” co-founder and co-CEO Joey Zwillinger said in an interview on CNBC’s “Squawk Box.”

“I think why the demand was so great … investors were really attracted by the opportunity to put their capital against great opportunity to create outcomes that were better for the planet,” Zwillinger added.

When asked what would be a fair comparable for Allbirds’ business, the co-CEO remarked that its a mix between traditional retailers with lots of stores and internet savvy brands.

The company has 27 brick-and-mortar locations as of the summer, but it’s planning to ramp up that number by the hundreds.

“It’s tricky. My business is in making fantastic shoes and selling to customers and creating great experiences,” said the co-CEO. “The financial part, we’ll let the investors drive the way.”

According to Zwillinger, customers who have long shopped at Allbirds for footwear are now stocking up on other items and growing the size of their baskets.

“We’ve been really focused on pegging people who come to know and love us because of our shoes,” he told CNBC in another interview. “And because they understand that we take these naturally derived materials to make incredibly comfortable shoes and we can take that same information and put it into apparel.”

And it expects to book a net loss of between $15 million and $18 million for the three-month period ended Sept. 30, compared with a loss of $7 million a year earlier.

“Before the pandemic, we were already very close to and on the path to breakeven,” Zwillinger said. “So this is something well within our sights, and we see a very clear and short-term path or else we wouldn’t be going public.”

Disclaimer: We have no position in any of the companies mentioned and have not been compensated for this article.