BUFFS Closes $1.1M Round, Jams Debuts at H-E-B 🤠

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CPG WIRE
July 15, 2026

Welcome back to This Week in CPG, folks. Here’s what we’re covering this morning:

  • PE pursues Segafredo Zanetti ☕️

  • IM8 lines up $1B for growth 📈 

  • Bubble launches Dream Fade 🧪

  • Evergreen adds Andy Judd to BoD 🧇

  • Driscoll’s continues to dominate 🍓

Deals 💰

Mergers & Acquisitions 

  • BC Partners and CVC are reportedly exploring a bid for Italian coffee producer Segafredo Zanetti. The company has been majority owned by Italian private equity firm Quattro R since April 2024 and revenue is expected to top €1B this year. EBITDA is expected to land in the €120M range. Reuters

Fundraising

  • BUFFS secured $1.1M in pre-seed funding from several seasoned operators and consumer investors. The company is launching on August 11th with a line of beef puffs made from grass-fed beef, egg whites, vegetables, and olive oil. Recent college grads George Zhou (USC) and Beckett Kitaen (TCU) are the founders behind BUFFS. Participants in this round include Jordan Brown, Nicholas Mares, Ari Raz, Sumesh Sachar, and many others. Bullish on BUFFS. LinkedIn

  • Citation Capital closed its inaugural fund with $1.2B in total commitments. Founded in 2023 by Tiffany Hagge and Lydie Hudson, Citation specializes in mid-cap buyouts in the services, industrial, and consumer sectors. In 2023, Citation Capital acquired a majority stake in Cibo Vita, a New Jersey-based manufacturer of natural and functional snacks. PR Newswire

  • Organic drink mix brand FAVE raised $1M in seed funding led by Supernatural Ventures. Other investors include Great Circle Ventures, The Angel Group, and several strategic angel investors. FAVE’s drink mixes are USDA Organic, Non-GMO, and free from artificial colors, flavors, and preservatives. 20-year CPG vet Ryan Raish is the founder of FAVE. BevNET

  • IM8, the fast-growing supplement brand created by Danny Yeung and David Beckham, secured up to $1B in non-dilutive growth financing from General Catalyst. Under the arrangement, General Catalyst’s Customer Value Fund will finance 70% of IM8’s marketing spend in return for a capped share of income tied to performance. IM8 will top $210M in revenue this year and the company expects to introduce a number of new products, including IM8 Hydration and premium gummies. TechCrunch

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What’s New 🤩

Apparel, Cosmetics, and Wellness

  • Fast-growing skincare brand Bubble just released its newest product: Dream Fade Discoloration Rescue Serum. The product is formulated with 10% azelaic acid serum and clinically proven to improve skin tone, redness, and radiance in just 2 weeks. Instagram

  • MAYAH is a new maternal bodycare brand that debuted with three stunningly packaged products. MAYAH’s Body Repair Oil, Omega Body Cleanse, and Soothing Nipple Balm are dermatologist developed and clinically tested to be “MotherSafe.” The company was co-founded by Rebecca Heywood and Jessica Smith. Fitt Insider

  • Sol de Janeiro is moving into the men’s fragrance category with the launch of Cheiroso 7 and Cheiroso 10 Cologne Mists. The $26 fragrance mists feature World Cup-themed labels and will launch at Sephora in August. WWD

  • Cowboy Colostrum launched its newest flavor with Cookies & Cream. To support the launch, Cowboy is rolling out its largest brand campaign to date which features model and influencer Cindy Mello. Fitt Insider

Food, Beverage, and Alcohol

  • Fast-growing frozen waffle brand Evergreen just added former Poppi CMO Andy Judd to its Board of Directors. Prior to joining Poppi, Judd helped turn Yasso, ONE Brands, and Laird Superfood into household names. Major score for Evergreen. Evergreen is currently the #1 frozen waffle brand in the two largest natural retailers. LinkedIn

  • Welch’s just entered the frozen PB&J category with its new Real PB&J Sandwich line. Each sandwich contains 12g of protein and a solid serving of fiber. Three flavors are available nationwide at Walmart: Strawberry Jam, Concord Grape Jelly, and Mixed Fruit Spread. Instagram

  • Refrigerated protein bar brand RJ Naturals rebranded as COZY Foods. The refreshed packaging features a more shelf-friendly brand identity and clearer ingredient + fiber callouts. COZY is available in two novel flavors: Warm Cinnamon and Salted Matcha. COZY Foods

  • Firehook Crackers released a Dill Pickle collab with Grillo’s Pickles. Firehook has now released collabs with Grillo’s Pickles, TRUFF, Graza, and Fly By Jing. Licensing FTW. Firehook

  • NuTrail just dropped its new Protein Nut Granola range with four flavors: Vanilla Almond, Honey Nut, Triple Berry, and Peanut Butter. The granola is made with nuts, seeds, and high-protein whey crisps, delivering 15g of protein per serving with no added sugar or gluten. PR Newswire

  • On The Brightside is a new functional soda brand built around Zembrin, a plant extract that delivers a calming effect within 20 minutes. Each can contains 15mg of Zembrin and two flavors are available: Guava Glow and Strawberry Sunshine. The branding is excellent. On The Brightside

  • QVC just launched a functional nutrition brand for women aged 50+ called Cloud Nutrition. The brand debuted with a nutrition bar line containing 14-16g of protein and 9g of fiber. LinkedIn

Data 🖥️

  • Simply Good Foods (NASDAQ: SMPL) reported $357M in Q3 net sales, a year-over-year decline of 6.3%. The decrease was largely attributable to Atkins whose retail takeaway dipped 23.9%. OWYN also posted a retail takeaway decline of 1.3% while Quest increased moderately by 1.4%. Former executive Joe Scalzo returned to Simply Good Foods as President & CEO in January and is in the midst of a turnaround. Nosh

  • Driscoll’s is now the second highest earning brand in American supermarkets behind Coca-Cola. The linked NYT profile on Driscoll’s is fascinating. NYT 

  • SMACKIN’ has now sold more than 25,000,000 bags of sunflower seeds since launching six years ago. Even more impressive, until recently SMACKIN’ was entirely bootstrapped. LinkedIn

Distribution News 🚚

  • Prima is now available at nearly 500 Kroger stores.

  • Snack Buddies launched storewide at Harris Teeter.

  • Javvy is now available nationwide at Walmart.

  • Mars Men launched nationwide at GNC.

  • TRUBAR debuted at select 7-Eleven stores.

  • Jams launched at H-E-B.