Spirits firm Pernod Ricard has taken a minority stake in ecoSPIRITS, a circular economy technology startup, which focuses on low carbon distribution systems for the drinks industry.
The French owner of Absolut vodka and Jameson whiskey made the investment through its Convivialité Ventures venture capital fund.
It joined a $10 million Series A funding of ecoSPIRITS along with Closed Loop Partners, Proterra Asia, Pavilion Capital and ecoSPIRITS’ existing investor, Wavemaker Partners.
'Innovative Solution'
“We are very pleased to participate in this investment which will help develop a company offering such an innovative solution to our industry, by drastically reducing waste and carbon emissions," commented Stéphane Longuet, co-founder and managing director of Convivialité Ventures.
"ecoSPIRITS’ approach is perfectly in line with our group's objectives to reduce its carbon emissions and we are looking forward to using it on a large scale around the world.”
According to Pernod Ricard, the funding will be used to accelerate ecoSPIRITS' research and development programme, scaling up its hardware, software and IoT research and expanding its operations.
Read More: Pernod Ricard Signs 'Sustainability-Linked' Loan
Previous Collaboration
Pernod Ricard previously collaborated with ecoSPIRITS on the distribution of several of its premium brands in Hong King and Singapore.
“We are thrilled with the successful close of our Series A round, which not only validates ecoSPIRITS’ impressive progress in building a comprehensive technology platform, but also marks a significant milestone in our journey to global scale," said Sui Ling Cheah, ecoSPIRITS executive board chairman.
"We are equally honoured to welcome leading investors to our journey such as Closed Loop Partners, Proterra Asia, Pavilion Capital and Convivialité Ventures. The future gets brighter when more resources are invested in circular economy innovation.”
© 2023 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest drinks news. Article by Stephen Wynne-Jones. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: European Supermarket Magazine.
