Bermondsey based online drinks distributor EeBria has received £250,000 from the Greater London Investment Fund to support its ambitious growth plan.
The finance, alongside an investor injection from earlier in the year, will enable the company to deliver its expansion, recruiting key London based staff across all of the sales and marketing and IT departments and taking on a new larger office space to accommodate its much larger team.
EeBria was established in 2013 by David and Rachael Jackson as a market disrupter in the UK alcoholic drinks distribution sector and is now on the verge of entry into several new European markets over the coming year. EeBria’s online platform connects trade buyers across the UK with both specialist craft brewers, cider makers and distillers as well as recognisable household names. EeBriaTrade.com is an integrated marketplace, providing 700 small and large drinks makers a national sales presence and a logistics system which can deliver kegs, cans bottles and casks to customers that would be otherwise unreachable using other methods. Their 35,000 registered buying accounts, made up of pubs, bars, shops, restaurants and also private buyers, value the huge range of products and brands at flexible order sizes as well as the competitive pricing.
David Jackson, Co-Founder and CEO of EeBria commented: “We're proud to partner with the largest number of drinks makers in the country and that we offer a range of thousands of products for sale every day, ranging from brand new specialist craft releases to mainstream brands. This list continues to grow, with new sellers joining our platform every week and the craft drinks sector is undergoing exciting growth. The funding will allow us to execute our growth plans, not only creating exciting opportunities in the UK but introducing the EeBria brand to Europe and taking our UK sellers products into new markets for the first time. Thanks to The FSE Group for taking us through the requirements and helping us to secure the finance to realise these plans.”
David Booth, Investment Manager for The FSE Group, which manages the £55 million GLIF debt fund on behalf of Funding London, commented: “EeBria is representative of the innovative high-growth businesses that we seek to back with debt finance. We were impressed by the founding management team and the commercial traction they have been able to deliver to date. We look forward to working with the business as it grows in London.”
Maggie Rodriguez-Piza, CEO at Funding London, adds: “Identifying a gap in the alcoholic drinks distribution market, Rachel and David have built a successful national business over the course of eight years. We look forward to what the future holds as they take the big step of expanding internationally and growing their team to support this ambition. We are delighted to support them in their growth journey.”
GLIF is a £100m initiative to help address the SME finance gap in Greater London, promoting economic growth through enterprise and an inclusive and sustainable economy. £55m of debt funding is available, via loans between £100,000 and £1m, to early-stage and established SMEs looking to scale-up and realise their growth ambitions. GLIF is financed through the European Investment Bank (EIB), European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), London Waste & recycling Board (LWARB) and Funding London’s Legacies.