Bhakti spicy chai tea raises $5.1m in series B financing round

13-Sep-2017 - Last updated on 14-Sep-2017 at 15:09 GMT

Bhakti - which is Sanskrit for ‘devotion’ - has broad distribution in the natural channel, and is steadily building its presence in conventional channels

Boulder-based spicy chai tea brand Bhakti has raised $5.1m in a Series B financing round led by accelerator Cleveland Avenue with participation from another unnamed strategic investor, the Colorado Impact Fund and other existing investors.

Founded in 2007 by Brook Eddy – who originally launched Bhakti chai concentrates into foodservice channels before pushing into retail with ready-to-drink iced chai beverages in 2011 and sparkling teas in 2016 – Bhakti products are available nationwide in natural and conventional retailers from Whole Foods, Fresh Thyme and Sprouts to Target, Kroger and Costco.

The latest investment, which brings the brand’s total funding to just over $9m, according to Crunchbase, will fuel packaging innovation, accelerate nationwide distribution into conventional retail and boost brand building activities, said CEO Sarah Bird, a food industry veteran with stints at Annie’s, Three Twins Ice Cream, Ecologic Brands, PepsiCo and Nestlé on her resumé, who joined Bhakti in 2016.

“We are truly thrilled to welcome Cleveland Avenue and our other new investor to the Bhakti tribe. They bring incredible expertise and will be tremendous strategic partners as we continue to build this brand.”

Bhakti’s signature iced chai blends combine organic fair trade black tea, organic ginger juice, spices, organic fair trade cane sugar, and soy, coconut or almond milk; while its sparkling teas are made from carbonated organic fair trade black tea, organic ginger juice, organic fair trade cane sugar, organic ginger juice, monk fruit extract, spices and juices/purees.