Well, we want to focus next on an IPO happening in London today and for that we're joined Buyer Breaking News editor and editor of the London Russian newsletter, Louise Noon, Louise good morning.
Good morning, Stephen So. Applied Nutrition, the maker of protein powders and supplements, has raised over one hundred and fifty seven million pounds in its IPO in London this morning. Shares a price at one hundred and forty pence, which was towards the low end of the range before they jumped at open touching one hundred and fifty pence. Now it's notable because it's one of the very few IPOs
that's happening in London at the moment. So to talk about it further, we're joined now by Thomas Ryder, the founder and CEO of Applied Nutrition. Thomas, good morning. Just want to start off with a question to ask why are you happy with this price this morning and were you disappointed that you weren't able to list at a slightly higher price.
Now, we're absolutely delighted with the place that we have.
We're absolutely delighted with the register of investors that we have, so honestly we couldn't ask that much more.
Talk to us about the decision to list and list in London. You know that there's many other companies that have chosen to go elsewhere for us, Was this a good time to list in London?
For you? You know?
I think fit Firstly, I think we chose the list because we just feel that we're on that we're at that point within our journey now of becoming the world's most trusted and innovative sports nutition brands, and we just felt that list and now would catapults us into a new league, offering us global credibility and global recognition. As we're an export company, we're trading over eighty countries. We just felt that was the right move forward us right now.
But when we explored the option, yeah, we aid some negativity around what markets to go on and LC, but for us were the UK brands.
We're proud to be a UK brands.
We're flying the flag for UK sports nutition brands globally and it would only ever be the London Stock Exchange. We would never consider anywhere else. We are we are, We're a proud UK company and we want to be on the LC.
So you noted that that negativity in some of your discussions before. Why do you think that London really does struggle struggle to attract these new listings. There's been a few reforms that have have been implemented more recently. Do you think those have worked? What do you think needs to change? What are the key problems?
You know?
You know, since we started this process and we went on the road and we're speaking to investors, we've seen not on BOD excitement. We've been seen not on BOD encouragement and people are really embracing our company with their arms open. We're absolutely humble, so we could ask for more. We've not seen anything for excitement here.
I wonder if you're thinking as well about the budget due next week. Lots of talk about what taxes might be raised on businesses as well. Were you conscious of that timing when you chose to list this week?
Now, we always plan to list in Q four. It's just that the data felt nicely for us. Well, yeah, it's it's always been within our plan.
So Thomas, I have to ask, so this You created this business roughly ten years ago, and from what I understand, you were a scaffolder before you started selling protein powders and these happens as a kind of side hustle. Did you ever think that this will happened?
Was this your plan?
Did you ever think you'd get to an IPA?
You know if the bats me ten years ago, No, we could never have done that. We'll be here today, IPO and the company. It's like it is literally a dream come true. But it has always been something in the back of my mind. Would I've always said some people say, well, where do you want to take the business?
But where where do you want to go? In the back of my mind Sometimes you don't say it out loud because you're ashamed too or I don't know, boy, in the back of my mind, I've always thought I would love to IPO the company and be a PLC.
It's interesting we've been reporting some comments from the Prime Minister overnight saying that he doesn't think there's anything in the budget that's going to scare entrepreneurs away. Is there anything that you'd like to see the government do that would perhaps help you to boost your business? You know?
For us, I just think in the UK it's important for businesses to work with the government's government to work with businesses, and I think whatever policies are put forwards, we're going to embrace them, you know. So we look forward to whatever whatever government and whatever policies are put in front of us.
Talk to us about where you expect the company to go from here. What's your next big goal that you're aiming for.
So that's where my focus is. And we've not gosted the service. Literally we've done well. You are right.
We've been around now ten years and we've come a long way, but we've not gosted the service.
So where we could be. This industry is absolutely huge.
This is a big world and we're now embracing a lot of new consumers, consumers from health and wellness consumers all the way up to professional athletes.
It's the road ahead of us is absolutely huge and exciting.
And having done this yourself, what advice would you give to someone else who would be in your position where you were about ten years ago, or someone you know considering starting their own business as well?
Number one, believe in yourself, don't let anyone put doubts on your own bleeps and your own ambitions, folly dream and just just just keep grinded away.
Do you think your Your business is based in Liverpool, are you Is that a good place for your business to be where you tempted to move anywhere else the time? Do you think you're kind of in a leadership position there where it comes to entrepreneurship in the city.
I'd like to think so, yeah. I mean, we would never ever move from the city. We are a Liverpool based company and that that's it. That's our route.
We manufactured in you know, we have a headquarters there, We have a manufacturing facility, warehouse and facility officers. We also have officers in the US, also in Dallas, but the heart of the business is in the book.
I'm interested in your export market as well. Where are you targeting to expand that? And you know, there's been so much talk about how the UK it's more difficult to trade, for example, with the European Union post braggs that have you experienced any of that?
There was there was complications post Brexit. I think that it's nothing that we've never overcome quite quickly, and it hasn't stopped us in any way or slowed us down in any way of trading with Europe. In factor's a huge demographic for US it's a region that where we do very well and we're growing in We're now going multichannel in Europe into grocers, so we've not seen any suppressing so we will not be suppressed in any way since since Brexit.
Thomas, thank you so much for joining us this morning and congratulations on the IPA this morning, but thank you for your time.
Thomas Rider, their founder and CEO of Applied Nutrition. Those shares trading at just over one hundred and forty seven pence on the London Stock Exchange this morning, the latest IPO, of course in the city at a time that we've been talking about a dearth of such listing. So great to get the perspective there of Thomas Ryder about his both the journey to the IPO for the company, why they chose to list in London, and his hopes for where they go next.