By Jonathan Roeder and Matt Townsend
Does this script sound familiar?
Startup makes a splash in a niche market with widespread advertising, celebrity backing and media coverage. Everyone learns the company’s name, and sales balloon. Actual profit remains elusive.
In this case, it’s the path of online mattress retailer Casper Sleep Inc., which filed last week for an initial public offering. The New York-based company, founded in 2014, became the leading brand in the so-called “bed-in-a-box” industry, thanks to its pioneering status in the industry and savvy marketing.
It got loads of press due to early backers like actor Ashton Kutcher. The company kept growing and, according to PitchBook, raised a total of $355 million, including from retail giant Target Corp. Its valuation topped $1 billion, making it a so-called unicorn, cementing its status as a darling of the venture-capital world. Casper joins a new generation of direct-to-consumer brands, like eyeglass-maker Warby Parker, that are trying to disrupt everything from toothbrushes to socks.
But following Casper’s IPO filing, investors now know exactly how much it has cost the company to reach its current annual sales that approach $400 million. Casper has racked up $300…
