The dairy-free milk alternative oat milk is fast becoming a cult favorite, and Swedish brand Oatly is among those leading the pack. Some big names are taking note — including Oprah, Jay-Z, and Howard Shultz, who are part of a group funneling more than $200 million into the brand.
This deal, which involves the sale of a 10 percent stake in the company, brings the valuation of Oatly to $2 billion. CEO of the company, Toni Petersson, told Cheddar in an exclusive interview that he plans to use the new funding to build on their momentum, and "continue the growth journey that we've been on for a few years now."
Oatly's rise in popularity has been a rapid one. Only 10 coffee shops in the United States featured the plant-based milk brand in 2017. By 2019, that number had grown to 3,500 coffee shops. Part of this new funding will be used to continue the company's expansion in reaction to its exponential growth.
"It's been crazy — completely crazy," Petersson told Cheddar. "We started off in 2018 with just one factory in Sweden, and mid next year we're going to have five factories on three continents, two of which will be in the U.S. And we don't think that's enough."
When Oatly's oat milk began gaining traction among the coffee shop patrons of the world, it quickly began selling out at grocery stores, and price gouging of the product began to skyrocket on e-commerce websites like Amazon.
If Petersson has his way, Oatly will soon be even bigger, and "more than just an oat milk brand, more like a generational brand."
President Donald Trump has fired one of two Democratic members of the U.S. Surface Transportation Board to break a 2-2 tie ahead of the board considering the largest railroad merger ever proposed.
Ford is recalling more than 355,000 of its pickup trucks across the U.S. because of an instrument panel display failure that’s resulted in critical information, like warning lights and vehicle speed, not showing up on the dashboard.
Nvidia reported a 56% increase in second-quarter revenue and a 59% rise in net income compared to a year ago.
The Rev. Al Sharpton is set to lead a protest march on Wall Street to urge corporate America to resist the Trump administration’s campaign to roll back diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives. The New York civil rights leader will join clergy, labor and community leaders Thursday in a demonstration through Manhattan’s Financial District that’s timed with the anniversary of the Civil Rights-era March on Washington in 1963. Sharpton called DEI the “civil rights fight of our generation." He and other Black leaders have called for boycotting American retailers that scaled backed policies and programs aimed at bolstering diversity and reducing discrimination in their ranks.
President Donald Trump's administration last month awarded a $1.2 billion contract to build and operate what's expected to become the nation’s largest immigration detention complex to a tiny Virginia firm with no experience running correction facilities.
Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos claims audiences don't want to watch Netflix movies in theaters, but that seems not to be the case recently.
Chipmaker Nvidia is poised to release a quarterly report that could provide a better sense of whether the stock market has been riding an overhyped artificial intelligence bubble or is being propelled by a technological boom that’s still gathering momentum.
Cracker Barrel said late Tuesday it’s returning to its old logo after critics — including President Donald Trump — protested the company’s plan to modernize.
Low-value imports are losing their duty-free status in the U.S. this week as part of President Donald Trump's agenda for making the nation less dependent on foreign goods. A widely used customs exemption for international shipments worth $800 or less is set to end starting on Friday. Trump already ended the “de minimis” rule for inexpensive items sent from China and Hong Kong, but having to pay import taxes on small parcels from everywhere else likely will be a big change for some small businesses and online shoppers. Purchases that previously entered the U.S. without needing to clear customs will be subject to the origin country’s tariff rate, which can range from 10% to 50%.
Southwest Airlines will soon require plus-size travelers to pay for an extra seat in advance if they can't fit within the armrests of one seat. This change is part of several updates the airline is making. The new rule starts on Jan. 27, the same day Southwest begins assigning seats. Currently, plus-size passengers can pay for an extra seat in advance and later get a refund, or request a free extra seat at the airport. Under the new policy, refunds are still possible but not guaranteed. Southwest said in a statement it is updating policies to prepare for assigned seating next year.
