Full Glass Wine raises US$14m to build DTC offering

US wine brand acquisition and management firm Full Glass Wine has secured $14 million in funding, with plans to boost revenues to more than $100m in 2024.

The startup is focused on acquiring direct-to-consumer (DTC) wine brands with the aim of building a multi-brand online marketplace.

The firm previously acquired wine subscription club Winc and online retailer Wine Insiders in June 2023 and October 2023 respectively. Winc filed for bankruptcy in late 2022 prior to its sale to Full Glass Wine.

Ahead of its latest funding round it also recently acquired Wisconsin-based subscription service Bright Cellars for an undisclosed sum. The deal was Full Glass Wine’s third in a year, and will assist in the firm’s bid to expand its subscription-based model.

These acquisitions will help the firm generate more than US$100m in revenue in 2024, Full Glass Wine claims.

“By uniting Winc, Wine Insiders, and Bright Cellars, we offer a one-stop shop for all things wine, catering to a wider range of wine drinkers than most traditional retailers, grocers, or single-brand DTC companies,” Neha Kumar, co-founder and COO of Full Glass Wine, told TechCrunch.

She said that the portfolio will allow the company to optimise logistics for efficient delivery and “leverage the power of established brands to create a powerful marketing platform”.

Co-founded in 2023 by Kumar and CEO Louis Amoroso, Full Glass Wine has now raised a $14 million Series A round. New capital will enable the company to invest in AI and technology. Bright Cellars, for instance, has a wine-pairing algorithm that learns from user preferences and ratings. The firm plans to utilise the programme to personalise recommendations and tailor customer experience.

“Our goal is to leverage data and AI to make personalized wine recommendations even more accurate and insightful,” Kumar said.

The company would not give detail of its current number of subscribers.