Yerba mate company Guayaki has raised $75 million in a funding round, according to a January 13 SEC filing by the company.
The filing reflects over half of the company’s $142.8 million offering amount in the equity fundraise, with $67.8 million remaining to be sold.
As well, Anthos Capital president Emily White and SBG Growth founder and CEO Robyn Rutledge appear to have joined the company’s board of directors, with both executives newly listed in the filing, Forbes reported.
Founded in 1996, Guayaki avoided taking outside investment for more than two decades. But since securing a $6 million raise in December 2017, the brand has significantly scaled its nationwide operations and taken on several more fundraises, closing its fifth venture round backed by CAVU Venture Partners and Swift Foundation in 2020.
According to Forbes, Guayaki has a team of over 600 employees.
Guayaki produces a variety of ready-to-drink and bagged yerba mate products, including canned and bottled beverages, and leads the RTD category. According to IRI, Guayaki’s canned and bottled tea drinks were up 10% to over $141 million in retail dollar sales in the 52-weeks ending January 1, 2023.
Comparatively, the next largest canned yerba mate brand is PepsiCo-owned YACHAK, which reported sales down -16.2% to around $12.2 million in the same period, while Texas-based independent CLEAN Cause grew 1.7% to $9.7 million. Although yerba mate has seen some lift as demand for plant-based products and clean energy drinks increases, the category remains a small segment of the U.S. beverage market.
Guayaki co-founder David Karr told BevNET in 2021 that there had been a “large uptick” in consumer awareness of yerba mate over the prior five years, but the category has remained strongest on the West Coast. That year, the company named former Red Bull North America CEO Stefan Kozak as its new CEO, replacing Chris Mann.