Smart for Life, Inc. (SMFL)

Smart for Life, Inc. developed, made and sold nutritional and wellness products, including protein bars, meal replacement shakes, cookies, soups and dietary supplements aimed at weight management and general health. It sold through its own websites, online marketplaces, retailers, distributors and medical weight-loss clinics that used its meal plans in structured programs. Its brands included Smart for Life, Doctors Scientific Organica, Greens First and a licensed Sports Illustrated Nutrition line. The company was based in South Florida, with manufacturing at its own plant in the region.

The business began as Bonne Sante Group, which in 2018 and 2019 bought the Millenium Natural manufacturing company and renamed it Bonne Sante Natural Manufacturing. In July 2021 it acquired Doctors Scientific Organica, which operated the Smart for Life weight management brand, and changed its corporate name to Smart for Life in August 2021. It then bought the affiliate marketer Nexus Offers and GSP Nutrition in late 2021, and Ceautamed Worldwide, owner of Greens First, in July 2022.

Smart for Life completed a downsized initial public offering on Nasdaq in February 2022, selling 1.44 million units at $10.00 each for gross proceeds of about $14.4 million. Each unit included one common share and two series of warrants exercisable at $7.00 and $10.00. The stock fell sharply soon after listing. The company relied on costly short-term loans to fund its acquisitions, reported continued losses, and carried out repeated financings and reverse stock splits to support its share price.

In December 2023 Nasdaq notified the company that its stockholders' equity had fallen below the $2.5 million minimum, reporting about $952,000 as of September 30, 2023. A hearings panel reviewed the matter in March 2024, and Nasdaq also flagged a missed 2023 annual meeting and late annual and quarterly reports. On September 17, 2024 the panel decided to delist the shares for failing to comply with its decision, effective September 19, 2024, and the stock moved to OTC Markets under SMFL.

After leaving Nasdaq, Smart for Life continued as a much smaller company quoted over the counter, with a weak balance sheet and limited trading volume. Delisting from a national exchange generally reduces liquidity and restricts which investors can hold a stock. The company's roll-up strategy of buying nutraceutical brands and combining them on a shared manufacturing and distribution platform had not produced profits during its time as a listed company, and its share price had fallen far below the IPO level.