Plant-based challenger Better Nature has raised new seed funding to fuel retail growth of its tempeh range in the UK and Europe ahead of a bigger Series A round next year.
The £700k seed funding will support the meat-free brand’s new listing with Holland & Barrett.
Better Nature, founded in 2018 and launched to market in 2020, specialises in products using tempeh, a fermented plant-based protein source typically made from soyabeans.
Its range is also available at Selfridges and Gopuff, and it works in partnership with Mindful Chef and Allplants.
Almost 70 existing investors, including crowd backers from Seedrs, participated in the round, alongside two new investors including the Global Entrepreneurship Centre, which helps scale innovative, sustainable businesses.
It follows a £1.6m round on Seedrs in March 2021 and £430k of seed funding in 2020.
The latest raise will also be used to drive retail growth in Europe, as the brand launches into Germany’s second-largest supermarket Rewe in early 2023. It also recently launched in Switzerland’s largest supermarket chain Migros.
NPD and innovation would also be a priority, with plans to launch new lines in 2023 that tap into growing demand for convenience in the all-natural plant-based category, and investment in marketing to increase consumer awareness of tempeh, the business said.
“This raise marks the start of a transformative stage for the brand as we scale up our distribution, marketing and NPD in a bid to take tempeh mainstream as we head into 2023,” said co-founder and CEO Christopher Kong.
“Within the plant-based category right now, there is a real opportunity for brands who can deliver on health, taste and convenience, and as a business we have a strong range of products that are perfectly placed to capitalise on this.
“Coupled with growing consumer demand for natural plant-based food, the market opportunity for tempeh is significant. At Better Nature, we want to be Europe’s go-to tempeh brand and this round will certainly help us on our journey to achieve that goal.”
Earlier this year, Better Nature rebranded its entire range of tempeh meat alternatives and added a host of NPD ahead of Veganuary.
It signalled a new direction for the brand to celebrate tempeh as a food in its own right rather than just as a meat alternative.
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