Drone food delivery is coming, Create raises $20m, McCormick buys Unilever Foods & more
Consumer VC Roundup #154 – Latest News in Emerging Consumer Brands, Tech & Commerce Enablement
Hey everyone,
Long overdue, but a huge thank you to everyone who came out to our Expo West morning event. This was our third year hosting it, and it’s been incredible to see how much it’s grown, both in attendance and in the feedback we’ve been hearing.
We’re planning a series of events across the country, bringing together the investment community and consumer companies. We’ve started opening up sponsorship opportunities for this year. If you’d like to get involved, shoot me a note.
This week:
Will drones deliver our food instead of cars?
Manna Air Delivery, an Irish drone delivery startup, just raised $50M to expand across the U.S., targeting suburban communities. They’ve already completed 250,000+ drone deliveries and partner with Uber Eats, Deliveroo, Just Eat, and DoorDash. Manna also has an app that you can order food and everyday products on. Meanwhile, GrubHub is piloting drone delivery in New Jersey. Seems like lots of momentum.
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🧃 Consumer Brands 👚
💰 Fundraises 💰
• Peachy, the beauty-services multi-unit retail business providing treatments by certified Nurse Practitioners, eeceived a minority investment from Stride Consumer Partners.
Source: FINSMES
• Standing Ovation, a French ingredient producer that uses precision fermentation technology to produce next-generation proteins, has secured a $28.5 million Series B led by the Ecotechnologies. The raise is to scale dairy protein production
Source: NOSH
• Create Wellness, Inc. the creatine gummy brand that’s expanding to powdered beverages raised $20M in Series B funding led by Alliance Consumer Growth, with participation from Impact Capital and Unilever Ventures. The funds will be used to accelerate growth, expand retail distribution, and invest in consumer education.
Source: FINSMES
💸 M&A 💸
• E&J Gallo has acquired Four Roses Bourbon from Kirin Holdings, expanding its portfolio in the spirits market.
Source: ESM
• Keurig Dr Pepper has completed its acquisition of JDE Peet’s after securing 96.22% of the company’s shares.
Source: ESM
• Constellation Brands has acquired Hopwtr to expand its nonalcoholic beverage portfolio.
Source: Food Dive
• McCormick has acquired Unilever’s food business for $45 billion, creating a global spice and condiments giant.
Source: Food Dive
• Sysco is acquiring Jetro Restaurant Depot for $29.1 billion, which will reshape how independent restaurants source food and could impact pricing. This acquisition allows Sysco to access over 725,000 independent restaurants, enhancing its distribution capabilities.
Source: Forbes
• Once Upon a Coconut, a premium coconut water brand, has acquired Punch’d Energy. The company has also named Matt Merson as President after his tenure as Chief Sales and Strategy Officer.
Source: BevNet
• Eagle Park Brewing & Distilling has acquired SoulBoxer Cocktail Co. to expand into canned cocktails, including THC-infused options.
Source: BevNet
🚀 Product Launches
• Khloud, the protein popcorn brand founded by Khloé Kardashian, expands to protein chips
Source: Food Dive
• Protein2o Aims for ‘Elite’ Consumer Set with P2X Advanced Hydration Launch. Protein2o is launching a new premium ‘Advanced Hydration’ line called P2X this month in Target stores.
Source: BevNet
• Hershey’s plans to return real chocolate to select Reese’s and Hershey’s products by 2027, indicating a shift towards higher-quality recipes.
Source: FoodNav
• FDA Approves Eli Lilly’s Weight Loss Pill—Second Weight GLP-1 Drug In Pill Form.
Source: Forbes
🗞️ Other News 🗞️
• Home Depot has partnered with The Weather Company to leverage weather intelligence in hyperlocalized marketing this gardening season.
Source: Forbes
💻 Consumer Technology 💻
💰 Fundraises 💰
• Manna Air Delivery raised $50M in Series B funding to expand its drone delivery platform across the United States. Investors in the round include ARK Invest, the Ireland Strategic Investment Fund (ISIF) and Schooner Capital, alongside existing investors Coca-Cola HBC and Molten Ventures.
Source: Business Wire
• estaie. a Dubai based hospitality tech startup that provides an extended-stay platform, raised 7-figure Pre-Seed funding to improve its extended-stay platform, which includes over 400 hotels and 1,000 holiday homes.
Source: Rerun
🛒 Commerce & Retail Tech 🛒
📰 News 📰
• Associated Wholesale Grocers (AWG) has announced a $110 million investment in its distribution facility in Louisiana.