Vita Coco Buys Copra, IM8 Raises $1B for Marketing Spend, Strategics Launch Protein SKUs, Align Ventures Raises Fund II & More
Consumer VC Update #157 – Latest News in Emerging Consumer Brands, Tech & Commerce Enablement
Hi friends,
Hope you are having a great summer. This week: IM8 raised $1B in a deal that's not equity and not quite debt, Vita Coco bought Copra to get into premium coconut water, Align Ventures closed a $125M Fund II to keep funding more brands.
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On to the news from the week:
📰 Consumer News 📰
Procter & Gamble forecasted slower revenue growth for fiscal 2027 due to inflation and rising commodity costs. The company expects total net sales growth of 1% to 3% in 2027, down from 3.3% in 2026. – ESM
Mondelēz International reported Q2 results with solid revenue growth driven by emerging markets, particularly Latin America. North America growth was modest, while Europe saw a decline in net revenues due to lower chocolate sales. The company is expanding distribution in Brazil, India, China, and Southeast Asia. – FoodNav
🧃 Consumer Brands 🧃
💰 Fundraises 💰
IM8, the AI-native DTC wellness brand co-founded by David Beckham (backed by Prenetics), secured $1 billion in growth financing from General Catalyst’s Customer Value Fund, which will finance up to 70% of IM8’s marketing spend. IM8 posted its strongest month ever in June ($17M revenue) and is targeting $300M annualized run-rate by year-end. – GlobeNewswire
Kind of like revenue-based financing, but not quite. GC funds IM8’s marketing spend and only gets paid back out of the revenue that spend generates, capped at a fixed return. Not equity, not really debt either. Here’s the catch: since the return is capped in dollar terms, paying it back fast (ads crush it) means your effective cost of capital is actually really high. But if the ads flop, GC eats the loss on that cohort, not IM8. No recourse beyond the revenue those customers bring in. So the real risk isn’t a growing bill, it’s that your cash flow’s tied up longer while the marketing spend doesn’t actually deliver.
Smash Foods, known for its low-sugar fruit spreads and Jammy Protein Bites, closed an $18 million round led by L Catterton (with The Family Fund and Eclair Ventures) to scale manufacturing and product development. – Forbes
They tripled their business since their last funding round, now in 10,000+ stores including Costco, Target, and Walmart. The real inflection point came in 2024 with the launch of Jammy Protein Bites, nut butter and fruit spread snacks. This new capital is going toward scaling manufacturing for the Bites line (including the newly launched Mini Bites) and further product development.
MERIT, the clean and minimalist cosmetics brand founded in 2021, received a minority investment from SEMCAP Beauty & Wellness, led by managing partner Vasiliki Petrou. – PRNewswire
Plantopia, an Israeli molecular farming company growing casein inside sprouted oats, closed a $9 million round led by Schreiber Foods and Siddhi Capital, bringing total funding past $16 million. Proceeds fund a production facility in Israel starting Q3 2026. – Vegconomist
BUFFS, a grass-fed beef puff brand that’s high protein, gluten-free and seed oil-free, closed $1.1 million in pre-seed funding. – NOSH
Final Boss Sour, a gaming-themed sour candy brand built in studio by Science Inc., raised $4 million from Evolution VC Partners, The Angel Group, Mondelez SnackFutures Ventures and others. Walmart, Kroger, H-E-B, Wegmans and Hy-Vee are next, with Target and 7-Eleven planned this fall. – Food Business News
💸 M&A 💸
Vita Coco acquired Copra, a super-premium Thai Nam Hom coconut water brand, for $175 million upfront plus up to $100 million in earnout through 2028 (total value up to $275 million). The deal signals coconut water is splitting into two tiers - the shelf-stable, scale-distribution business Vita Coco has owned for over a decade, and the cold-chain, varietal-sourced “super premium” tier Copra built out, already doing $100M+ in net sales across branded and private label. – Food Dive
🚀 Debuts, Distribution & Expansion 🚀
Halfday, a better-for-you iced tea brand made with prebiotics, launched nationwide at ~1,100 Target stores and on Target.com with a new chilled slim can lineup, including an exclusive Strawberry Half & Half flavor. This comes after they launched in 3,000 Walmart stores in May. – BevNET
Coco5, the athlete-owned coconut water hydration brand backed by NBA stars Devin Booker, Charles Barkley, Derrick Rose, and D’Angelo Russell, made its Costco debut this month. – PRNewswire
Kate Farms has entered CVS with its High Protein Nutrition Shake (25g protein, 6g fiber, organic/non-GMO) and expanded Walmart distribution to 3,879 stores en route to 6,800 total locations by August, part of a push targeting GLP-1 users with dairy-free, sugar-free formulations. – Vegconomist / Modern Retail
Sahajan, an Ayurvedic skincare brand, is expanding into 49 Sephora Canada stores after nearly $12 million in revenue and 40%+ YoY growth, following a successful online partnership with Sephora that began over two years ago. – Beauty Independent
PlusOne is launching 15 pleasure and care product - lubricants, menopause care, mostly under $20 at Ulta. – Beauty Independent
🚀 Product Launches 🚀
Chef Boyardee is launching a new line of high-protein canned pasta with at least 25g of protein per can. – PRNewswire
Agthia entered the energy drink market with Fuell, claimed to be the world’s first energy drink sweetened with dates. – FoodNav
Campbell’s Chunky Soup is expanding into frozen meals with Chunky Frozen Bowls, packing up to 28g of protein per serving. – Food Dive
Tiny Vinyl introduced a $49.99 tabletop player for its collectible four-inch records, exclusive to Target, an affordable entry point after pressing over one million records. – Forbes
💼 Fund Closes 💼
Align Ventures, an early-stage VC focused on health and wellness consumer brands, closed an oversubscribed $125 million Fund II (exceeding its $100M target), bringing total AUM to more than $2.5 billion. The fund plans to back 15-20 brands with $2-10 million checks. Align’s investments include Coterie, California Naturals, The Farmer’s Dog, Hims, and Figs. – BevNET
💻 Consumer Technology 💻
💰 Fundraises 💰
Throne Science, founded by former Whoop CTO John Capodilupo, raised $10 million in a Series A led by Will Ventures to develop its AI-powered toilet camera for tracking gut health and hydration. The round brings total funding to nearly $18 million since 2023, with participation from Emerson Collective, Workshop, LEAD VC, Salt VC, Accomplice, and Moxxie Ventures. – Crunchbase
TELO, maker of compact electric trucks, raised $27 million backed by Tesla co-founders Marc Tarpenning and Martin Eberhard. – Forbes