An Aberdeen bar owner has launched a new £200,000 crowdfunding campaign for his cocktail in a can company.
Whitebox Cocktails wants to use the cash to accelerate its global expansion, expand inventory and boost its marketing.
Ben Iravani, owner of city-centre cocktail bar Orchid and 99 Bar and Kitchen, launched Whitebox alongside partners including Alex Lawrence, Pietro Collina, Jack Wareing and Josh Rennie in 2021.
With a business motto of “better canned cocktails”, the team decided to launch the business after they sold more than 60,000 cans of negroni, a popular Italian-style cocktail.
Since launching the crowdfunder on Monday, it has raised nearly £168,000 from 139 investors so far.
Whitebox Cocktails crowdfunder
Whitebox, claiming to be one of the fastest-growing independent cocktail brands in the UK, already raised £823,974 from 575 investors last year through its crowdfunding on Seedrs.
Last year it generated revenue of £1.45 million a 84% growth from 2022.
Ben said: “Since our last Seedrs round in 2023, where we raised over £820,000 from 575 incredible investors, we’ve made tremendous strides.
“Our revenue has increased by 84%, we’ve launched three new cocktails, expanded our production capacity to 6.5 million cocktails per year, and grown our customer base to over 1,000 UK retailers.
“Our ambition doesn’t stop there, so with the premium canned cocktail market set to grow to £30.9 billion ($40bn) by 2027, we’re coming back to our Seedrs community to offer the chance of further investment in this exciting next phase of growth for Whitebox.”
Targeting international market with crowdfunder
The brand’s factory in Edinburgh can now produce more than 25,000 canned cocktails every day.
The range includes the award-winning Pocket Negroni and Freezer Martini, along with a growing range of classic cocktails, including Chipper’s Old Fashioned, Classic Cosmo and Squeezy’s Margarita.
Earlier this year, Whitebox announced plans to expand its international distribution, partnering with global brand-building agency, Artisan Spirits, which operates across Europe, Middle East, Africa and Asia.
Already stocked in seven export markets, this new partnership will provide the business with the sales platform it needs to scale quickly and meet growing international demand.