1 of 4 | PETA supporters wearing coyote masks and holding signs that say "Indecent Public Offering" stage a protest outside of the New York Stock Exchange on the day of the Canada Goose IPO on Wall Street in New York City on Thursday. Canada Goose will trade on the NYSE under the ticker symbol GOOS. Photo by John Angelillo/UPI |
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March 16 (UPI) -- Luxury winter apparel company Canada Goose debuted on the New York Stock Exchange on Thursday with shares trading about 25 percent higher than the starting point, but the reception was decidedly icier outside, where animal rights groups protested the company's use of real animal fur.
Canada Goose offered 200 million shares in its initial public offering, valued at about $12 per share. By midday Thursday, the company's stock had risen to more than $16 per share. The Canadian company's stock is also traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange.
Canada Goose was made famous for its $900 parka, which is lined with real coyote fur and goose down.
The latter fact drew protests from People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals and other activists who held signs and photos of dead animals. Others wore coyote masks.
"Every fur-trimmed Canada Goose coat represents the terrifying and painful death of a coyote who was trapped, strangled, shot, stomped on, or bludgeoned," PETA Executive Vice President Tracy Reiman told CNBC. "PETA is calling on consumers to reject Canada Goose's cruelty to coyotes and geese and to invest in kindness by buying vegan clothing instead."
PETA said it plans to purchase about 4,000 shares of Canada Goose, enough so it has the privilege of sending letters to fellow shareholders, and will have a voice at the company's annual shareholders meetings in the future.
In a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Canada Goose acknowledged the ongoing protests of its products.
"We have been the target of activists in the past, and may continue to be in the future. Our products include certain animal products, including goose and duck feathers in all of our down-filled parkas and coyote fur on the hoods of some of our parkas, which has drawn the attention of animal welfare activists."
