Liquid Death closes funding round valuing business at $1.4B

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Dive Brief:

• Liquid Death closed a $67 million financing round valuing the beverage company at a $1.4 billion valuation. The money will be used to grow distribution nationally to meet demand and accelerate product innovation, the startup said.

• The investment includes contributions from national distributors, along with names in entertainment and sports such as actor Josh Brolin and NFL All-Pro DeAndre Hopkins.

• Liquid Death said it had $263 million in retail sales through registers in 2023. The fast-growing water and tea manufacturer posted triple-digit growth for the third consecutive year, according to SPINS data cited by the company.

Dive Insight:

As Liquid Death sees demand for its products surge, investors are, not surprisingly, interested in owning a piece of the company. 

The $1.4 billion valuation is a “strong increase over prior funding rounds,” the Los Angeles company said. The last funding round for Liquid Death occurred in October 2022 when it raised $70 million, valuing the brand at $700 million.

Liquid Death said its financial needs have been “accelerated by higher than anticipated retailer demand” for its new sparkling water and iced tea flavors expected to launch this spring.

“Liquid Death has become the fastest growing and leading brand across the water, flavored sparkling water, and iced tea categories,” Mike Cessario, founder and CEO of Liquid Death, said. “We continue to see extremely strong consumer and retailer demand and are proud to have raised a strategic, oversubscribed, ‘up’ round to fuel our growth.”

The funding round continues what has been an active period at Liquid Death. 

Once known just for its water and eye-catching name, Liquid Death has moved aggressively to expand its presence in the beverage category. It has entered flavored sparkling water, iced tea, and earlier this year a new category with the introduction of Death Dust — an electrolyte drink mix available in three flavors: Severed Lime, Mango Chainsaw, and Convicted Melon.

Liquid Death, known for its tagline of “Murder your thirst,” reportedly hired Goldman Sachs last summer to help it with an IPO later this year. It also appointed former White Claw executive Stephen Ballard as its first chief commercial officer last October where he will oversee field sales, distribution, national accounts, and international expansion.