It's a scrappy story that many of us have come to admire. In 2008, Airbnb was a fledgling startup that had a challenge that a lot of early-stage companies face: they needed cash. The legend goes that the founding team needed to pay down tens of thousands of dollars in credit card debt, and fast. So, they got creative. They culture-jacked the presidential election that year by selling novelty cereal boxes (Obama O’s and Cap’n McCains) for $40/ea. The boxes flew off the digital shelves and the team was able to turn a $30K in profit in a matter of days. It has been reported that the stunt helped them capture the attention of investors who admired their out-of-the-box (sorry, had to do it) approach. The rest, as they say, is history. With Airbnb’s S1 officially filed, Public.com is paying tribute to the journey from idea to IPO with limited edition "IPOats." We’re giving away 500 boxes to lucky winners who enter on the site. *This is just for fun and not investment advice. See Public.com/disclosures/.

Such a creative and fun campaign, congrats @katie_perry and team! (Also not so secretly hoping that PH upvotes count as bribes for cereal)

Too cute!! Such a clever way to recognize the airbnb ipo!

I love this, really smart way to give a nod to Airbnb's crazy lil' cereal days.