Food company Sovos could be Boulder Valley’s latest public company

LOUISVILLE — Sovos Brands Inc., a formerly California-based food brand company, is seeking an initial public offering for up to $100 million and could become Boulder County’s latest publicly traded firm.

The company made headlines locally in 2018 when it bought Bellvue-based Noosa Yoghurt LLC and again in 2020 when it absorbed Denver waffle mix maker Birch Benders LLC.

Since those acquisitions, the company has relocated its headquarters to Louisville, according to documents filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and the Colorado Secretary of State.

Sovos has manufacturing locations in Austin, Texas and Bellvue.

It’s unclear exactly when Sovos changed their headquarters from California to Louisville as company representatives weren’t immediately available for comment Friday morning. However, Colorado Secretary of State documents show that the company registered its Centennial Parkway address only about two weeks ago. 

In addition to Noosa and Birch Blenders, Sovos, a private-equity-backed company, owns Rao’s Homemade Sauce and Michael Angelo’s frozen italian meals. 

The company, founded in 2017, is seeking inclusion on the Nasdaq exchange and plans to use ticker symbol SOVO.

Pricing, timing and the number of shares to be offered have yet to be determined, according to the SEC disclosure.

J.P. Morgan and Goldman Sachs are acting as joint lead book-running managers for the proposed offering. 

“Today, Sovos is exactly what we set out to create — a high-growth, purposefully-built food platform and growth accelerator with a portfolio of ‘one-of-a-kind’ brands,” Sovos founder and CEO Todd Lachman wrote in a letter included in the regulatory filing. “All four of our brands — Rao’s, Michael Angelo’s, noosa and Birch Benders — are built with authenticity at their core and high-quality ingredients, providing food experiences that are genuine, delicious and unforgettable. And we still have a long runway in each of these brands that supports our algorithm for sustainable long-term profitable growth.”

Sovos plans to “pursue more acquisitions of disruptive growth brands,” the SEC filing said. 

“We strategically develop our brands to allow them to extend into new categories over time to grow their [total addressable market], and we are relentlessly focused on innovation to drive broader consumer adoption and new usage occasions,” Sovos said. “We target entering attractive new categories where our brands can make an immediate and measurable impact, and also where we believe consumers are increasing their expenditures.”

The company’s brands have combined for sales of about $669 million over the twelve months preceding June. Roa’s is by far the company’s largest brand, accounting for 55% of sales. Noosa is second with 24% of revenue. 

Editor’s note: This story is developing and will be updated as new information is available.

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