Ryan Reynolds & Rob McElhenney Buy Wrexham Lager 🍻

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CPG WIRE
October 31, 2024

GM and Happy Thursday, folks. It’s been a wild few days in CPG Land so let’s dive right into the newsletter:

  • UpSnack buys two brands 🍿

  • Final Boss Sour raises $3M 🫐

  • Olivia Wilde launches VC fund 👀

  • Daily Crunch x Fly By Jing 🌶️

  • Evergreen launches at Walmart 🧇

Reynolds & McElhenney Buy Welsh Brewery 🍻

Four years after buying Wrexham AFC, Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney are doubling down on the Welsh town by purchasing Wrexham Lager, one of the oldest lager breweries in Great Britain.

Brewed in Wales since 1882, Wrexham Lager produces award-winning lagers using Welsh water, modern German brewing equipment, and the original 140-year-old recipe.

The acquisition was made via Red Dragon Ventures, a joint venture formed by Reynolds and McElhenney, with additional financing from the Allyn family of New York. The Roberts family, who have owned and operated Wrexham Lager since 2011, will maintain an active role within the business.

Reynolds and McElhenney plan on scaling up Wrexham Lager’s international production, distribution, and marketing efforts. The brand is already experiencing rapid growth in the UK, and will launch in Australia, Canada, Japan, Scandinavia, and the United States in the near future.

Celebrities have been piling into the beer category lately:

  • Jason & Travis Kelce acquired a significant stake in Garage Beer earlier this year

  • Tom Holland launched BERO, a premium non-alcoholic beer brand, two weeks ago

  • J.J. Watt and Lance Armstrong invested in Athletic Brewing Co. 

  • Troy Aikman launched EIGHT Brewing Co. in 2022

  • Hulk Hogan co-founded Real American Beer

More on the acquisition here.

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Deals 💰

Mergers & Acquisitions 

  • UpSnack Brands has acquired Pipcorn and Spudsy, two fast-growing brands in the better-for-you salty snack category. Spudsy makes snacks from upcycled sweet potatoes, while Pipcorn produces various products from heirloom corn. Ashley Rogers launched Spudsy in 2018 and the company was backed by KarpReilly. Pipcorn was founded in 2012 and was backed by Factory LLC. Food Processing

  • Oddlygood, a Finnish producer of plant-based food and beverage products, has acquired Rude Health, a UK-based purveyor of alt dairy products and granola. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Just Drinks

  • Finland’s Paulig has acquired Panesar Foods, a UK-based producer of sauces and condiments. Panesar operates three manufacturing facilities across the UK and posted revenue of $76.5M last year. The Grocer

Fundraising

  • Final Boss Sour, a purveyor of better-for-you sour snacks, secured $3M in seed funding. The round was led by Science Inc. Other investors include Aoki Labs, F4 Fund, GFR Fund, and Uncommon Denominator. Final Boss Sour is based in Los Angeles and was founded by James Hicks and Tommy Riggs. Business Wire

  • Actress Olivia Wilde has launched Proximity Ventures, a consumer-focused venture firm. Thus far Proximity Ventures has backed Pendulum Therapeutics, a producer of next generation probiotics. TechCrunch

  • Hilco Global and TPG Angelo Gordon announced a joint venture with Bluestar Alliance to identify and invest in consumer brands and intellectual property. Bluestar Alliance already owns a number of compelling apparel brands like Off-White, Scotch & Soda, and Hurley. PR Newswire

What’s New 🤩

Apparel, Cosmetics, and Wellness

  • Luxury personal care brand evolvetogether collaborated with goop on an exfoliating bar soap. The product retails for $20 and is available online and at goop retail stores. PR Newswire

  • Minimalist skincare brand Sonsie released its newest product — Cleansing Mousse. It’s a beauty. Instagram

  • Vuori is opening its second retail store in London. Vuori’s newest store is located on Regent Street is 4x larger than their original store in Covent Garden. Draper

  • Ryan Scott, the former President & Chief People Officer at Tatcha, has been named the new CEO of Dieux. Co-founder and former CEO Charlotte Palermino will step into the Chief Brand Officer role. Business of Fashion

Food, Beverage, and Alcohol

  • Daily Crunch and Fly By Jing collaborated on a delicious new sprouted nut product — Spicy & Sweet Sichuan. Can’t wait to try this one. Trend Hunter

  • Perfect Hydration unveiled a sleek brand refresh. The updated packaging is an enormous improvement. Perfect Hydration retails at CVS, Kroger, Walmart, and many other stores. Business Wire

  • BFY soda brand Poppi is now the official soda of the Los Angeles Lakers. PR Newswire

  • Magnolia Bakery continues to push further into CPG with their newest product line: Frozen-To-Thaw Banana Pudding. The iconic product is available in three flavors: Wafer Cookie Bits, Chocolatey Hazelnut Swirl, and Red Velvet Cookie Bits. NOSH

  • According to an Instagram post, Marco Ice Cream is sadly shutting down after four years in business. Earlier this year, Marco’s manufacturer issued a recall of all products produced in its facility. RIP to a great brand. Instagram

  • After two years of research and development, Whitebox Cocktails finally launched a canned espresso martini. The Spirits Business

  • Little Spoon, the fastest-growing kids food brand in the U.S., released a new product — Organic Oatmeal Baby Cereal. Little Spoon has really dialed up the innovation this year. NOSH

  • PopSips, a purveyor of spiked prebiotic sodas, launched and is available nationwide at Target. The packaging is very compelling but I’m curious if people trying to catch a buzz are actually concerned about their gut health? Instagram

Data 🖥️

  • Puig posted strong Q3 results with net sales rising 11.6% to €1.26B. Puig owns a number of fast-growing beauty brands like Byredo and Charlotte Tilbury. Reuters

  • Brooks Running continues to grow fast and surpassed $1B in sales for the first nine months of 2024. Footwear News

Distribution News 🚚

  • Daily Crunch is now available nationwide at Whole Foods Market.

  • Evergreen launched at Walmart in 29 states.

  • Hi Seltzer launched at Total Wine & More.

  • Indie personal care brand Sans Savon launched at goop.

  • UK-based GROUNDED launched at Whole Foods Market in CA & NY.

  • TBD launched at Wheatsville in Austin, TX.

  • Doughy is now available at select Target stores.