After going public on the stock market yesterday, Jessica Alba’s ethical consumer products company The Honest Company was valued at about $2 billion dollars.

On Wednesday afternoon in New York, the shares were trading 37.5 percent higher than the IPO price, at roughly $22. Alba now owns 6.1 percent of the firm, which is worth $124 million.

“I was born into a hardworking Mexican-American family. My parents worked multiple jobs, doing whatever it took to get by,” Alba wrote in a letter included in the company’s prospectus, describing a childhood defined by ill health and hospital admissions. “By the time I was ten, I became aware of how wellness can define your whole life. That’s never left me.”

Alba, 40, was photographed exiting her New York City hotel on Thursday looking like the pinnacle of business chic.

Alba, the business’s co-founder and chief creative officer, stated in an interview, “This is an incredible jump off into building a company that I hope will be around for 100-plus years.”

Jessica Alba, actor and businesswoman, Nick Vlahos, CEO of The Honest Company, and Adena Friedman, President and CEO of Nasdaq, pose together during The Honest Company’s IPO at the Nasdaq Market site in Times Square in New York City, U.S., May 5, 2021. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid

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“Our growth, fueled by being public, will enable us to drive more product innovation and consumer accessibility,” added Alba, who is best known for her appearances in the films “Fantastic Four” and TV series “Dark Angel.”

Alba, 40, started the company in 2011 after seeing a lack of chemical-free baby goods on the market. The carbon-neutral firm sells “clean and natural” diapers, wipes, shampoo, and lotions to parents who are environmentally concerned, ambitious, and reasonably affluent. In 2020, Honest Co. had revenue of over US$301 million, up 28% from the previous year, and an operating deficit of US$13.5 million, down from $31.1 million the year before. It has never been profitable.

The company’s IPO takes place in the midst of a bullish IPO market and rising investor interest in sustainable businesses.

According to media sources, plant-based burger company Impossible Foods is trying to list through a blank-check merger, while sustainable shoe maker Allbirds is also in negotiations for an IPO.

Jessica Alba, actor and businesswoman, poses during the IPO of The Honest Company at the Nasdaq Market site in Times Square in New York City, U.S., May 5, 2021. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid

Lightspeed, Fidelity, and General Catalyst, among others, have invested in Honest.

Honest has been plagued by product recalls and controversy in the past due to its claims of using only natural ingredients. It was valued at US$1.7 billion in a 2015 investment round prior to those issues.

Honest then agreed to a $7.35 million settlement for mislabeling natural, plant-based, or chemical-free components in select goods.

The actress is a rare example of someone who has successfully transitioned from Hollywood to Wall Street. While numerous celebrities have signed licensing arrangements for fashion lines or items like vodka or perfume, few have gone on to create publicly listed firms.