Ahead of raising its Series A next year and following a £1.6 million seed round in March 2021, Better Nature has secured £700k in seed plus funding to fuel retail growth for its tempeh range in the UK and Europe during 2023.
67 existing investors, including Seedrs investors, participated in the round plus two new backers, including The Global Entrepreneurship Centre (GEC) which scales innovative, sustainable businesses.
The funding will be used support Better Nature’s new listing with Holland & Barrett and help build on existing listings as well as drive retail growth in Europe – the brand is launching into Germany’s REWE supermarket in early 2023 following its recent launch in Switzerland’s largest supermarket chain MIGROS.
This raise marks the start of a transformative stage for the brand as we scale up our distribution, marketing and NPD
The brand says it also plans to launch new lines in 2023 to tap into rising demand for convenience in the all-natural plant based category and invest in marketing to increase consumer awareness.
“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,” comments Better Nature’s 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 which are perfectly placed to capitalize 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.”
In August, ex-Planet Organic CEO Peter Marsh, who headed the organic and health retailer for 13 years, joined the board of Better Nature to support its expansion plans.
