JuneShine Closes $24 Million In Series B To Accelerate Hard Kombucha Business

Hard kombucha company, JuneShine, has raised $24 million in a series B round to accelerate its business with plans to venture into new better-for-you alcohol categories in 2022, and initiate a series of passion projects through celebrity partnerships.

The latest round, led by JuneShine’s existing investors including Amberstone and Litani Ventures (launched by RXBar’s founder Peter Rahal after selling his business to Kellogg

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for $600 million in 2017), was closed after JuneShine saw its revenues triple between 2019 and 2020, and double during the following year.

San Francisco-based Amberstone, a $45 million fund that has previously sold Chameleons Cold Brew to Nestlé, and currently has nine active investments according to PitchBook, reportedly poured $6 million into this round, while Litani and Villam Ventures, recently launched by RXBar’s other cofounder Jared Smith, together invested $3.5 million.

JuneShine, which has been selling organic hard kombucha (4.2%-6.0% ABV) since 2018, also plans to use the fund to support the development of its first brick-and-mortar tasting rooms outside of California, in addition to strengthening its sales and marketing infrastructure.

Its passion project series features a collection of flavors designed the brand’s celebrity ambassadors, including Whitney Cummings, Evan Mock, Cody Ko, Ali Krieger, Ashlyn Harris, Mark Wystrach, Ty Haney, Sage Kotsenburg, Austin Keen, Nora Vasconcellos – some of whom are also JuneShine’s investors.

“JuneShine is one of those category-defining brands that doesn’t come around very often,” said Nick Mindel, partner at Amberstone. “The brand is driven by a team that has brought transparency and better-for-you options into the alcohol segment, and they are just scratching the surface on what they can accomplish.”

Rahal also said in a statement: “JuneShine has the strongest team in the game, which makes it really easy to invest behind.” The series B raise is expected to drive JuneShine’s valuation further, which has reached $80 million after the close of the company’s previous fundraise.

“We plan to double revenue again in 2022 fueled by our growth in grocery store retailer and new product line innovation,” said Forrest Dein, cofounder of JuneShine.

Chief Commercial Officer, Todd Karnig, also notes how hard kombucha overall has performed “exceptionally well” in first mover retailers, and JuneShine is well positioned to push the category to grow further.

“As the leading brand in the category,” Karnig said, “we made big distribution gains in the fall retail sets, and we anticipate bigger wins in the spring.”

He said: “Our chain placements are up 91% and our chain volume is up 145%. Grocery has been a great fit for JuneShine as our flavor and package innovations get increased attention. We are delivering for retailers, and exceeding their expectations is our focus.”