Toronto-based electric toothbrush company Brüush Oral Care announced the closing of its initial public offering (IPO) at Nasdaq earlier this month, generating approximately $15.5 million USD in gross proceeds.
Brüush began trading on the Nasdaq Capital Market under the ticker ‘BRSH’ on August 3. The company filed to go public with a $17.25 million IPO in the beginning of July. Upon closing of the IPO, Brüush missed its initial IPO target by $1.75 million.
With an initial exercise price of $4.16 per share at its IPO, Brüush’s stock price has fallen to $2.11 USD at the time of publication.
Even with slightly missing its IPO target, Brüush’s decision to go public is notable at a time when the public market for tech companies has become less friendly than it’s been in recent years. After a year of numerous Canadian tech IPO exits, the economic downturn hit the public markets at the end of last year and saw other Canadian tech firms reduce their IPOs. Edtech firm D2L and investor relations software company Q4 cut the sizes of their IPOS last year after seeing lower than expected demand from investors.
Initially incorporated in Vancouver, Brüush is a direct-to-consumer online business that provides oral care products. Its offering consists of a sonic-powered electric toothbrush and brush head refills through a subscription program. Brüush was founded by Aneil Manhas, a former investment banker and private equity investor.
Since its inception in 2018, Brüush claims to have grown its active subscriptions to about 28,000, with a customer base largely made up of people aged between 18 to 46 years old. In addition to its online store, Brüush also sells its products through Amazon and have drop-ship arrangements with third-party retailers such as Indigo, Harry Rosen, Macy’s, and Urban Outfitters.
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In November 2020, comedian and actor Kevin Hart joined Brüush as a partner and celebrity endorser. The oral care startup’s filing with the Securities and Exchange commission noted that it agreed to pay Hart two installments of $750,000 for a total amount of $1.5 million. Other celebrities that have endorsed Brüush include Nick Jonas.
Brüush previously raised $6.5 million in Series A funding in 2020, which was slotted for strategic marketing initiatives, increasing brand awareness, and growing Brüush’s subscriber base.
Last year, Brüush acquired The Dollar Brush for an undisclosed amount. In that same year, Crunchbase data shows that Brüush raised $1 million from GenCap Management.
Featured image from GQ Magazine’s YouTube video with Nick Jonas.