What's going on?

Luxury coat maker Canada Goose went �public� on Thursday (i.e. it completed a so-called IPO by listing its shares for trading on stock exchanges) � and its stock price immediately jumped over 25%! (tweet this)

What does this mean?

About 35 years ago, a mom �n� pop apparel company in Toronto sold its first �Snow Goose� designer winter jacket made with premium Canadian goose down feathers. Today, its $900 winter parkas are taking the affluent world by storm. In the meantime, the company has massively grown its annual revenue from $5 million in 2001 to $150 million in 2013, when a big chunk was bought by Bain Capital (a major investment firm) at a reported $250 million valuation. By the end of trading on Thursday, Canada Goose was valued at almost $2 billion! That�ll keep �em warm.

Why should I care?

The big picture: The IPO market is heating up.

Snap Inc. became a public company a few weeks ago in a high profile $24 billion IPO. Canada Goose isn�t quite as valuable, but there was clearly high demand from investors for its stock. Other IPOs have taken place this year and more are likely on the way. This shouldn�t really be a surprise: with stock prices near record highs, private companies are keen to get in on the action.

For the stock: Investors see differences between Canada Goose and other retailers.

It�s been a rough year for many retailers (cough, cough� Under Armour, Tiffany�s and others), so it�s noteworthy that investors are snapping up Canada Goose�s shares. The company�s profits are growing (although more slowly than they used to) and it directly sells a growing proportion of its own clothing (particularly online). But to maintain its growth, it will likely need to shake up what it sells to consumers (you�re not going to buy a new Canada Goose jacket every winter) and it�s not certain that it will be able to do this effectively, given its distinctly winter-y brand appeal.