MeliBio Makes Moves, Documents Secures Funding 🍯

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CPG WIRE
January 11, 2024

GM and Happy Thursday, folks. Today we have a heap of deal and distribution announcements so let’s dive right in:

  • L’Oréal buys Gjosa 🚿

  • Altamont bets on Mini Melts 🍦

  • Burnt Faith scores $2.5M 🥃

  • David Chung launches new brand 👀

  • Magic Mind rolls out at Sprouts ⚡️

Shout-out to our partner Barrel, the go-to web agency for brands like KIND Snacks, Dr. Jart+, Once Upon a Farm, and many others.

MeliBio Makes Moves 🍯

MeliBio, an Oakland-based startup that uses precision fermentation to produce a bee-free honey alternative, is off to a hot start in 2024.

The company, which was founded by Darko Mandich and Aaron Schaller in 2020, announced a $10M partnership with Aldi to sell its plant-based honey across Europe over the next four years. A key player in this partnership is Narayan Foods, a Slovenian organic food manufacturer that sells into 75,000 stores across Europe. Narayan will manufacture MeliBio’s plant-based honey which will be marketed under one of Aldi’s private label brands, Just Veg.

MeliBio plans to use this approach — owning their R&D and intellectual property while outsourcing production to companies like Narayan Foods — as it scales across the globe. Per the company, MeliBio is currently in talks with a number of other large food companies. 

Additionally, MeliBio is in the midst of raising $10M in Series A funding. To date the company has raised just over $9M from the likes of Astanor Ventures, Big Idea Ventures, Siddhi Capital, Collaborative Fund, and others. 

MeliBio is confident that an additional $10M in funding will take them to profitability. Compared to other producers of alternative products like Beyond Meat, Impossible Foods, or Oatly, MeliBio is a decidedly lean operation. 

More on these announcements from Axios.

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Since 2006, we’ve helped build digital experiences for well-known brands like KIND Snacks, Dr.Jart+, Once Upon a Farm, SmartyPants Vitamins, The Outset, and many others. We’re also Shopify Plus Partners.

Check out our Chief Experience Officer, Lucas Ballasy, talk about how CPG brands can up their web presence on the 3Squares Podcast.

If you’re interested in taking your web experience to the next level, contact us here. We’d love to hear from you.

Documents Secures Funding 📈

Documents, a luxury Chinese fragrance brand, closed a multi-million dollar funding round led by Ushopal Group, a brand management and investment firm best known for helping Western brands break into the Chinese market. 

While Ushopal Group owns majority stakes in a number of brands — namely British skincare brand ARgENTUM and French fragrance brand Juliette Has A Gun — this is their first time backing a Chinese beauty brand. 

Per Lu Guo, CEO of Ushopal, “the investment in Documents marks Ushopal's first venture into the domestic market, signifying our belief that China has produced brands capable of stepping onto the global stage.” 

Shanghai-based Documents was founded by Zhaoran Meng in 2021. The company sells a variety of fragrance products and recently expanded into body care. They’re perhaps best known for their eye-catching retail stores. Pictured above is their store in Shenzhen, dubbed Documents Blushing House.

Interest in the Chinese fragrance category has been rising as of late. New Incubation Ventures, the venture and incubation arm of The Estée Lauder Companies, invested in another Chinese luxury fragrance brand, Melt Season, in December. Prior to that, in late 2022, L'Oréal acquired a minority stake in Documents.

More on the news here.

Deals 💰

Mergers & Acquisitions 

  • French beauty firm L’Oréal is acquiring Swiss water reduction startup Gjosa for an undisclosed sum. L’Oréal invested in Gjosa in 2021 and they collaborated on a water saving showerhead that’s now carried at over 10,000 professional hair salons. Cosmetics Business

  • Fenwick Food Group is acquiring Wickles Pickles, a beloved Alabama brand that sells a variety of pickled products. Fenwick Food Group is a subsidiary of Fenwick Brands, an investment firm that owns stakes in brands like Ursa Major and Lemi Shine. PR Newswire

  • Altamont Capital Partners is acquiring a controlling interest in Mini Melts USA, one of the fastest-growing ice cream makers in the U.S. Founded in 2004, Mini Melts has grown from one vending machine to serving over 30 million ice cream cups per year. WSJ

  • CVC is set to acquire German vitamin & supplements maker Sunday Natural for around €900M. Vitamin manufacturing can be big business — last year Kirin acquired Australia’s Blackmores for $1.2B. Bloomberg

  • Clean beauty brand Kosas is reportedly exploring a sale. The company was founded in 2015 and is expected to exceed $120M in sales this year. WWD

Fundraising

  • Burnt Faith, a London-based brandy distiller, raised $2.5M in funding. Investors include Matthew Freud, the founder of Freud Communications, and Keith Greggor, a spirits industry veteran. Burnt Faith was founded by Simon Wright and is the first dedicated brandy distillery on the British Isles. The Spirits Business

  • Luxury giant Kering has invested in Mogu, a Italian biomaterials startup that uses mycelium to produce flooring, wall panels, and alternative leathers for use in the fashion industry. Mogu raised a total of $12M which was led by CDP Venture Capital and The European Circular Bioeconomy Fund. Business of Fashion

  • Actor Michael B. Jordan has invested in Dr Smood, the company behind functional sea moss beverage brand MOSS. BevNET

  • London-based private equity firm Perwyn Advisors has backed Crosta & Mollica, a UK-based producer of Italian entrees, desserts, and snacks. The company was founded in 2009 and retails at Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Waitrose, and others. British Baker

  • Danish venture firm Kost Capital secured €25M for its debut fund which will invest in European food tech startups. ArcticStartup

What’s New 🤩

Apparel, Cosmetics, and Wellness

  • David Chung, the founder of skincare brand Farmacy which was acquired by P&G in 2021, is back with a new haircare brand called The Rootist. The Rootist hits on a number of trends in haircare like scalp health and sustainability. The line of six products will debut at Sephora later this month. PR Newswire

  • Skincare unicorn Augustinus Bader has hired Dior & L’Oreal alum Jérôme Pulis as its new head of Global Brand Marketing and Communications. Cosmetics Business

  • Acquisitive beauty firm L’Occitane Group has named Laurent Marteau as its new CEO. Marteau has been Managing Director at L’Occitane Group since 2022. Happi

  • Hero Cosmetics launched its first new product of 2024 — Glow Balm. Instagram

  • Louis Vuitton unveiled a new men’s jewelry line called Les Gastons Vuitton. The 18-piece collection is available online and at select boutiques. Prices range from $2K to $158K. WWD

Food, Beverage, and Alcohol

  • Rowdy Energy, the energy drink brand co-founded by Kyle Busch and Jeff Church, is shutting down. The company launched in 2020 and raised $13M in 2021. Positioned as a better-for-you energy drink option, Rowdy Energy surged to 50,000 doors in two years. BevNET

  • Retailer Foxtrot has revealed its annual list of Up & Comers, an initiative that celebrates small food & beverage brands. Winners include Geem (seaweed snacks), Ting’s (jackfruit chips), A Friendly Bread (on-the-go grilled cheeses), and others. Foxtrot

  • Chamberlain Coffee launched a new product — Yuzu Matcha. Instagram

  • The Coconut Cult partnered with Siete Foods to launch a limited-edition Cinnamon Churro yogurt. Yum. Instagram 

  • Granola brand Purely Elizabeth introduced a new line of Cookie Granola. Instagram

Data 🖥️

  • The beverage alcohol division of cannabis giant Tilray grew revenue by 117% in their most recent quarter. In late 2022, Tilray acquired Montauk Brewing Company, and last year they purchased a number of beer brands from Anheuser-Busch. BevNET

  • Irish whiskey exports dipped by 14% in 2023. This was largely driven by a decline in consumption in the U.S. Irish cream liqueur exports also fell albeit only by 9%. The Spirits Business

Distribution News 🚚

  • Nguyen Coffee Supply launched nationwide at Sprouts Farmers Market.

  • Luxury beauty brand Westman Atelier is expanding its retail presence at Sephora.

  • Coffee alternative brand MUD\WTR launched at Target.

  • Skincare brand The Outset will now sell via QVC.

  • Magic Mind is now available nationwide at Sprouts Farmers Market.