We have had some very exciting speakers at our past Vator Splash events, including PayPal co-founder and CEO and serial investor Peter Thiel; Box CEO Aaron Levie; Twitter CEO Dick Costolo; EvernoteCEO Phil Libin; Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh; Pandora co-founder Tim Westergren; Eventbrite co-founders Kevin Hartz and Julia Hartz; Big Fish Games founder and CEO Paul Thelen, and Lending Club CEORenaud Laplanche, just to name a few.
We pride ourselves on being able to attract the most celebrated, high-profile, news-making entrepreneurs who are changing the world. This time, we’re proud to add to that growing list: Jessica Alba and Brian Lee, the co-founders of The Honest Company, a subscription service for eco-friendly baby and family products, who will join Bambi Francisco, Founder of Vator, on stage for a Fireside Chat.
Alba, as I’m sure you know, is a world-famous Golden Globe-nominated actress, known for her parts on the television show Dark Angel, as well as movies that include Fantastic Four, Sin City and Into the Blue. She’s also been nominated multiple times for the People’s Choice Award and the Nickelodeon Kids’ Choice Awards.
Lee, meanwhile, is an entrepreneur who regularly teams up with celebrity clients to start new companies. First, he and famed OJ Simpson lawyer Robert Shapiro came together to found online legal solution site Legalzoom in 2001. The company has now raised $266 million in funding.
He also co-founded Shoedazzle, alongside reality show star Kim Kardashian. The e-commerce website offering personalized shoes for women was acquired by JustFab in August of last year.
Big and bold mission
Besides both aiming to usurp P&G’s prowess (P&G has a market cap of some $250 billion), both Alba and Lee are on a mission to rid the world of toxins.
And it wasn’t until Lee had children that he got that religion. Both Lee and Alba have two children the same age (3 yrs old and 5 yrs old). Alba has Honor and Haven. Lee has Madison and Davis (named after Baron Davis, who is close friends with Alba and her husband Cash Warren).
The Santa Monica-based The Honest Company designs and manufactures all of its own products, such as diapers, wipes and bath / skin care. The Honest Company also formulates and manufactures household cleaning products, such as laundry detergent, surface cleaners and dish soap.
Launched in 2012, The Honest Company has raised $122 million in venture capital funding, most recently a$70 million round in August of this year. It has a $1 billion market cap at the last round, and is on a revenue run-rate of $200 million.
So what’s next for the company? A possible IPO, Lee told me after the company’s most recent funding round.
“I believe that the public market is what we’re heading for, the reason being that want to control own destiny,” he said. “We are very mission focused, and to accomplish our vision, and what we set out to do, we have to control our own destiny and the public markets will allow us to do that.”
He pointed to being a public company as allowing The Honest Company to control its own product and formulation, and to “make sure our actual ingredients are not disrupted.”
It also wants to be able to maintain the direct relationship it currently has with its customers.
“We are blessed and thankful that there are so many mothers who see the world the same way we see it, who want to see change, make a difference, and create a healthy environment,” Lee said.
Attendees can come watch Lee and Alba talk with Vator’s founder and CEO Bambi Francisco on Thursday. During the conversation, Lee and Alba will touch on what’s in store for The Honest Company in 2015 (China? Baby Formula? Honest Beauty) as well as beyond.
You’ll hear it at Splash first!
Don’t forget to REGISTER before prices jump at the door.
(Image source: nytimes.com)
