Founder: Steve Magami (CEO)
Launched: 2012
Headquarters: Los Angeles
Funding: $293 million
Valuation: $1 billion
Key Technologies: N/A
Industry: Agriculture
Previous appearances on Disruptor 50 list: 0
Igor Gnedo, Antonina Lepore & Adrianne Paerels
The company formerly known as Agrovision looks to be a one-of-a-kind: The first berry-based unicorn in history. The past year was a big one for the Los Angeles-based startup, which changed its name to Fruitist. It introduced grape-sized blueberries, broke ground in China to meet that country’s demand for superfruits, and raised a combined $500 million in venture capital and through a credit facility.
Fruitist is disrupting the snack food market, which is estimated at $50 billion in the United States alone. Berries have taken off against a backdrop of changing tastes, as consumers search for healthier snack options, especially as more people take GLP-1 weight-loss drugs.
Recent press reports indicate the company is considering an IPO in the near future, after already reaching $400 million in annual sales, according to CNBC reporting. The company, founded in 2012, is making its first major marketing moves as a sponsor of the professional soccer club D.C. United.
While tariffs remain a wildcard, Fruitist is in the midst of a global expansion, building out a network of sustainable farms to enable complementary harvest seasons. After a start in Peruvian blueberries, the company has since expanded to grow raspberries, blackberries, and cherries. In December, it acquired Chile’s ZurGroup to expand into premium cherries.
In November, a $400 million credit facility, extended by Goldman Sachs, Barclays, Scotiabank and BBVA among others, replaced a $210 million credit line. Last year the company also secured a $100 million venture capital round led by Aliment Capital that valued the company at the $1 billion unicorn mark. Hedge fund billionaire and Bridgewater Associates founder Ray Dalio is one of its backers.
In 2024, its fruit was sold in over 12,700 stores, including Whole Foods, Wakefern, Giant, Trader Joe’s, and Wegmans, up over 20% from 2023.
Fruitist is a high-flying tech company, but it was built on public infrastructure investment. The company was founded by Steve Magami, who recognized the agricultural potential of Peru, according to an “Authority Magazine” interview on Medium. Working for a private equity firm, he flew to the South American country to look at starting a biofuel company. But the market crashed, and instead of biofuels, Magami started what was then Agrovision. He also benefitted from the Olmos Irrigation project, which diverted water from the Atlantic side of the country, using a tunnel and a dam, to a desert on the Pacific side, turning it into fertile agricultural land.
Magami has said he is committed to the social impacts of the business, explaining that more than half its workforce in Peru are women. “Agriculture in South America is creating an economy that would not otherwise exist. Our team in Peru earns an attractive monthly wage that is improving the quality of lives and building communities,” he told entrepreneur Chad Silverstein in the Authority interview.
The company also meets about 35% of its electricity needs through solar power.
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