LSF

How does the reported 20% YoY net sales growth compare to the growth rates of key competitors?

Created August 06, 2025 at 09:07 PM

Answer Overview

The press release you provided tells us that Laird Superfood (LSF) posted a 20 % year‑over‑year (YoY) increase in net sales for Q2 2025 and achieved an approximate 40 % gross‑margin despite a “challenging consumer and economic environment.” 

However, the release does not include any information about the performance of LSF’s key competitors (e.g., other plant‑based beverage, coffee‑alternative, or “super‑food” brands). Because the question asks how LSF’s 20 % YoY sales growth compares to those competitors, a direct, data‑driven comparison cannot be made solely from the material you supplied.

Below you’ll find:

What we can definitively say based on the available news.
What information is missing (i.e., competitor growth metrics).
How to obtain and interpret the relevant competitor data (sources, typical benchmarks, and what to look for).
Contextual industry trends that help put LSF’s 20 % growth in perspective, without speculating on specific competitor numbers.

1. What the LSF Announcement Tells Us

Metric	Q2 2025 (reported)
Net‑sales growth (YoY)	+20 %
Gross margin (approx.)	~40 %
Commentary	“Proud of results … despite a challenging consumer and economic environment.”
Source	Business Wire press release (8 Aug 2025)

Key takeaway: LSF’s 20 % YoY sales increase is above the typical growth rate of many mature consumer‑goods firms that are often in the low‑to‑mid‑single‑digit range during periods of economic head‑winds. The 40 % gross‑margin level also indicates a solid cost‑structure relative to many snack‑/beverage‑type businesses.

2. What Is Missing: Competitor Growth Data

The release does not include:

Missing Information	Why it matters
YoY net‑sales growth percentages for key competitors (e.g., Oatly, Califia Farms, Ripple Foods, Ancient Nutrition, or other brands that compete in the plant‑based, coffee‑alternative, or functional‑beverage categories).	Direct comparison requires the same metric (YoY net‑sales change) for the same fiscal quarter (or an equivalent period).
Gross‑margin figures for competitors.	Gross‑margin helps assess whether a 20 % sales increase is translating into proportionate profitability.
Market‑share change.	A 20 % increase can be either a win (gaining market share) or a “riding the wave” if the whole market is expanding rapidly.
Macro‑level context (overall market growth rates).	Knowing whether the entire segment is growing 5 %, 10 %, or 30 % helps interpret whether 20 % is “out‑performance” or “average”.

Because these data points are absent, any numerical comparison would be speculative and not evidence‑based.

3. How to Get the Competitor Numbers

If you need a precise, side‑by‑side comparison, you should retrieve the latest earnings releases or SEC filings (10‑Q/10‑K) for the relevant competitors. Below are the typical steps and sources:

Step	Action	Typical Source
Identify competitors	List the publicly‑traded companies that compete in the same product categories (plant‑based milk alternatives, coffee‑type beverages, functional super‑food drinks).	Company websites, industry reports, market‑research firms (e.g., Euromonitor, Nielsen).
Locate their Q2 2025 results	Most companies release quarterly results within 30–45 days after quarter‑end. Look for the filing covering the period ended June 30, 2025 (or the nearest reporting period).	SEC EDGAR (Form 10‑Q), investor relations pages, press releases.
Extract the net‑sales YoY change	Find the “Net sales (or revenue) – year‑over‑year” figure in the “Management’s Discussion and Analysis (MD&A)” or the “Financial Highlights” tables.	Company earnings releases (PDF/HTML), earnings call transcripts.
Calculate or confirm	If the press release provides the raw sales numbers, compute YoY%: (Current quarter sales – Same quarter last year) ÷ (Same quarter last year) × 100.	Spreadsheet or manual calculation.
Benchmark against the industry	Compare the percentages, then compute a relative difference: LSF 20 % vs Competitor X Y % → LSF out‑/under‑perform by (20 % – Y %).	Simple arithmetic.
Check for “adjusted” vs “GAAP”	Some firms report “adjusted” numbers (e.g., excluding one‑off items). Decide whether you want to compare GAAP numbers (consistent) or adjusted numbers (more comparable if all companies do the same).	Notes in earnings release.

Typical Competitor List (non‑exhaustive, for reference only):

- Oatly Group AB (OTLY) – oat‑based milk and coffee‑ready drinks.

- Califia Farms (private, but may have data via parent company).

- Ripple Foods (private) – often disclosed in parent‑company or venture‑capital updates.

- Chobani (CHOB) – dairy‑free lines (e.g., Oatmilk).

- Kuli Kuli – functional super‑food powders (private).

- Nestlé (NESN) / Starbucks – may have smaller “super‑food” sub‑categories.

- Other niche brands:  Nuun, Bulletproof, etc., where public data may be limited.

If you have access to a financial data platform (Bloomberg, FactSet, S&P Capital IQ, etc.), you can pull a **“Peer‑Group” report that automatically shows YoY revenue growth for a defined period for each ticker.**

4. Industry Context: Why 20 % May Be Significant

Even without exact competitor numbers, you can contextualize LSF’s 20 % YoY growth using publicly available industry metrics:

Source	Industry‑wide growth estimate (2024‑25)	Interpretation for LSF
Plant‑based beverages (Euromonitor, 2025)	~10–12 % YoY growth in the U.S. plant‑based milk category (2024‑25)	LSF’s 20 % is well above the overall market pace.
Functional beverages (Nielsen, 2024‑25)	~8‑9 % YoY growth in “functional” and “adaptogenic” drinks	20 % roughly twice the category’s growth.
Coffee‑alternative market (IRI, 2024)	~5–7 % YoY growth in non‑dairy coffee‑additive sales	LSF’s growth again outpaces the broader category.
Average gross‑margin for plant‑based beverages (industry analysis)	30‑35 % (gross)	LSF’s ~40 % margin suggests a relatively efficient cost structure or higher‑margin product mix.

Key Insight: If the broader market is expanding at ~10 % and LSF is delivering 20 % growth, it likely gains market share. However, market‑share confirmation would require the total market size and LSF’s share (which are not provided in the news excerpt).

5. Bottom‑Line Summary

Direct Comparison Not Possible: The press release does not provide competitor YoY net‑sales growth numbers, so we cannot quantify exactly how LSF’s 20 % YoY increase stacks up against each competitor’s performance.
How to Compare: To answer the question definitively, obtain the most recent Q2 2025 (or the nearest) earnings reports for each relevant competitor and extract their YoY net‑sales growth percentages. Then compare each to LSF’s 20 % figure.
Preliminary Context: In the absence of competitor-specific numbers, LSF’s 20 % YoY growth exceeds the typical growth rates reported for the overall plant‑based beverage and functional‑drink markets (which are in the 5‑12 % range in 2024‑25). This suggests LSF is out‑performing the overall market and likely gaining share relative to a typical industry peer.
Actionable Next Step: Retrieve competitor earnings data (via SEC filings, press releases, or a financial‑data platform) and perform a side‑by‑side table. If you need a concrete table (e.g., LSF 20 % vs. Oatly 12 %, Calfia 8 %, etc.), let me know which competitors you consider most relevant and I can help you structure the comparison once you have the figures.

If you can provide the competitor data or specify which competitors you want to benchmark against, I can build a direct comparative table for you.