Iris Ventures, a venture capital firm, has injected £5.5 million ($6.9 million) into Biomel, a UK-based brand specializing in gut-health beverages, with the aim of supporting an “unprecedented scale-up.”
The investment will be utilized to increase production capacity at Biomel’s “innovation and manufacturing facility” located in west London.
Established in 2017 by the husband-and-wife duo Steven Hegarty and Janett Lozano, Biomel specializes in crafting plant-based beverages, snack bars, and powders, with a dedicated emphasis on enhancing gut health.
The probiotic shots, available in 125ml and 510ml single-serve bottles, feature enticing flavors such as coconut, chocolate, and strawberry. Additionally, Biomel offers dairy-free, lactose-free, and gluten-free prebiotic cereal bars in both chocolate and chocolate hazelnut variants.
The company said “soaring demand… has driven its impressive sales trajectory and operating profitability since its second year”.
It added, “Biomel’s omnichannel route-to-market has driven extraordinary organic growth, averaging over 80% per annum since launch.”
Biomel’s offerings can be found in major UK retailers such as Sainsbury’s, Marks and Spencer, and Waitrose. Additionally, the brand operates a direct-to-consumer (D2C) subscription service through its website.
The startup also noted an expanding presence in independent retailers and global markets.
Hegarty, Biomel co-founder and CEO, said, “Biomel was born out of our own desire to live healthier and more fulfilling lives and is based on the premise that your gut is at the heart of your health.
“We have developed proprietary IP to bring differentiated and better solutions for consumers looking to improve their health and well-being through next-generation probiotic and prebiotic solutions that support digestive and immune health.
“Biomel is the market leader in the category and we are partnering with a global investor powerhouse to fulfil our mission to make good gut health delicious and easy through products modern consumers enjoy and love.
“We are excited to leverage Iris’s sector expertise and know-how to further drive total category growth and market expansion through our unique products and innovation pipeline.”
Iris Ventures said Hegarty and Lozano were “clear trailblazers in the plant-based gut health category”.
The venture capital firm serves as the advisor to Iris Fund I FCRE, a €100 million ($109.19 million) growth-equity fund focusing on European and U.S. brands. Among its portfolio, the firm has invested in Olistic, a vitamin-drink brand based in Spain, and Mammaly, a pet-health startup headquartered in Germany.