iHerb has chosen a trio of major banks to lead a planned initial public offering, according to people familiar with the matter. The health and wellness e-commerce company picked JPMorgan Chase & Co., Morgan Stanley and Citigroup Inc. to serve as lead underwriters for an offering that is expected to target about $500 million in proceeds.
The company is headquartered in Irvine, California, and officials have signaled that a listing could take place as soon as this year. Insiders cautioned that deliberations remain active and that the structure or timing of the proposed IPO could change.
Business footprint and scale
iHerb operates an online retail platform specializing in vitamins and supplements, while also offering sports nutrition, beauty, bath and personal care, grocery, baby and pet care items. The retailer sources products from nearly 2,000 brands and reports a global workforce of more than 3,000 employees. The company serves over 15 million customers across more than 180 countries.
Earlier this year, iHerb closed its acquisition of Vitacost from Kroger Co. as part of an effort to broaden its presence in the U.S. market.
Financial snapshot and prior IPO activity
According to comments from the company's finance chief, Mike Cody, iHerb generated in excess of $2.8 billion in sales last year and was profitable. The company previously submitted confidential IPO paperwork in 2021 but later abandoned those plans in early 2022.
What is known and what remains uncertain
Public reporting indicates the selection of JPMorgan, Morgan Stanley and Citigroup as lead banks and cites the roughly $500 million fundraising target. Beyond those items, sources indicate discussions are ongoing and details could be adjusted prior to any final filing or pricing decision. A potential listing timeframe - described by one source as possibly "as soon as this year" - remains contingent on internal deliberations and market conditions.
Given the business lines described, the principal operational focus cited is direct-to-consumer retailing across health, wellness and personal care categories, with an expanding U.S. footprint following the Vitacost acquisition.
Source limitations
This report presents the available, attributable details about planned underwriting appointments, the targeted fundraising amount, company size metrics, recent acquisition activity, last years revenues and prior confidential IPO filing history. Observers noted that additional specifics have not been finalized and could change.