Alcoholic ice pop brand smashes 450k crowdfunding goal in 24 hours

Northern Irish alcoholic ice pop brand Wavey Ice has hit its £450,000 fundraising target in just 24 hours, with three weeks left of the campaign.

Wavey Ice, based in Hillsborough, Northern Ireland, has raised £535,521 from 89 investors at time of publishing, and hopes to hit a £600,000 target by 6 September 2023 when its crowdfunding campaign comes to an end.

The alcoholic ice pop brand was launched in 2014 in London. In 2022 it was acquired by Aaron Gibson, investor and startup entrepreneur, and is now run by managing director and head of production Laura Davis alongside a team of four.

The frozen cocktail brand has launched its campaign through equity crowdfunding platform Seedrs, with funds raised to grow both in the UK and internationally.

Wavey Ice offers five alcoholic flavours – Trippy Tropical Rum Punch, Easy Espresso Martini, Perky Pornstar Martini, Slutty Strawberry Daiquiri and OG Orange & Vodka – and two recent non-alcoholic additions – Virgin Mango Pineapple Mojito and Virgin Sex on the Beach. The brand plans to expand its range with the help of funds raised.

Sales of its ready-to-drink alcoholic and non-alcoholic cocktails and boozy ice Pops were up 306% in the last 12 months. Managing Director Davis said the serves, which have an ABV of 6.5%, were conceived as “an adult twist on childhood favourites”.

Wavey Ice has had previous success collaborating with olympic diver Tom Daley and by supplying drinks to the team at The Voice UK.

Laura Davis said: “We jumped on the opportunity to buy the business as we knew it had a lot of potential, and it’s been a canny move as we’ve tripled sales.”

RTDs and canned cocktails have seen major growth over the past few years. The flavoured spirits sector, which grew to a value of US$16.03 billion in 2021, has been forecast to be valued at US$50.77 billion by 2029.

And celebrities, including Jennifer Lopez, are buying into the category. Read more here.