Pip & Nut has hired advisors to secure a major cash injection to drive the nut butter brand’s next stage of growth.
The health-focused supplier has hired Houlihan Lokey to find a partner to acquire a minority stake in the brand for around £5m.
The search for a cash injection comes less than a year after Pip & Nut announced a £1m funding round to drive new product growth.
In the past year, it has delivered 24.6% sales growth, significantly ahead of 7.4% growth in the nut butter category [IRI], and is now stocked across the big four.
Cash will be used for increased marketing and to grow the brand’s pipeline of new products, as it aims to hit a retail sales value of £23m in 2021.
The company is currently in discussions with both high net worth individuals and institutional investors, with a preference for “a partner or partners with food and drink experience”.
The brand was founded by Pippa Murray and launched to market in January 2015. It can now be found in over 20,000 stocking points across the UK. “The fundraise is driven from the fact that we have recently won all the major grocers, and now have a great platform to raise brand awareness and drive the brand harder,” said Murray.
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“A lot of that investment will be directed towards marketing, building up the team in order to support the growth we are seeing through those retailers.
“Pip & Nut has been a big part of growth in the segment; over the years we’ve brought more shoppers, particularly millennials, to the category. We are looking to drive category growth with innovation over the next year, where we will be launching into more ‘better for you’ areas.”
Over the past two years the brand has launched a series of NPD including a range of nut milks. It would continue to drive a pipeline of new products away from its core range, Murray added.
The supplier raised £120k on Crowdcube in 2014 before its official launch and a further £350k from private investors in early 2016. It has seen backing from leading industry figures including Vita Coco CEO Giles Brook and former Bulldog Skincare chairman Peter Littlewood.
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