Eve Sleep has seen its shares plummet this morning after it updated the market on the progress of its £15 million funding round.
Last month, the struggling mattress brand revealed a new funding plan, launched by freshly-instated chief executive James Sturrock and aimed at re-energising the online retailer after its ambitious and rapid expansion plan had stunted growth.
The announcement sent its share prices jumping 30 per cent, having previously taken a beating after the abrupt departure of its co-founder Jas Bagnieowski.
However, the ongoing funding round is yet to meet its £15 million target, seeing Eve’s share prices drop 19.2 per cent in morning trading.
It is reportedly short by about £5 million, with fund manager Neil Woodford pledging £8 million, chairman Paul Pindar pledging £1 million, and Channel 4 promising a further £400,000.
All are buying new stock at 10p per share, a 30% discount to Eve‘s closing price on Wednesday.
Sturrock remained confident the £5 million hole would soon be plugged.
“Whilst the fundraise is not yet completed and is subject to a short delay, the board remains confident of delivering the investment from existing, new and potentially strategic investors which is required to deliver the business strategy,” he said.
“We look forward to putting the business on a stronger footing with a view to establishing eve as a leading sleep and well-being brand.”
Last month, Sturrock announced he had completed a business review and wanted to build deeper relationships with customers in the retailer’s core markets of France, the UK and Ireland.
In the first half of 2018, Eve reported sales growth of 61 per cent to £18.6 million, coming up short of the 100 per cent growth anticipated.
This follows a £19 million loss in 2017, despite sales shooting up 132 per cent to £27.7 million.
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