A fund launched by the founders of Innocent smoothies has raised over £100m to back early-stage consumer brands across the UK.
JamJar Investments is looking to make around 10 investments a year, with up to half of this fund available for follow-on investments.
It initially invests at seed or Series A stage, with these investments typically ranging from £500,000 to £3m.
The VC was founded in 2013 by Adam Balon, Jon Wright, Richard Reed and Katie Marrache, two days after they sold Innocent Drinks to Coca-Cola for $700m (£535m) in 2013.
It has since grown to become the most active seed-stage consumer investor in the UK, investing in the likes of unicorns Deliveroo, Babylon and Oatly.
See also: Tech unicorns UK – complete guide to the billion-dollar club
JamJar was created for the next generation of entrepreneurs and ideas its founders believe in. “Our bottom line is we are entrepreneurs first and investors second,” they said.
The £100m Fund II includes £48m from the British Business Bank’s Enterprise Capital Funds (ECF) programme – making it the largest ECF investment to date – capital raised from JamJar’s founders and a Seedrs crowdfund.
JamJar partner, Katie Marraché, said: “JamJar is looking forward to helping new category-defining brands win their fight. Consumer consciousness is in our blood and we are proud to be the first fund to absorb all Seedrs fees meaning our crowd has come in on exactly the same terms as larger LPs.”
Ken Cooper, managing director of Venture Solutions at the British Business Bank, added: “The British Business Bank’s Enterprise Capital Funds programme is key in helping to develop and maintain effective venture capital provision in the UK, lowering the barriers to entry for emerging fund managers and for those targeting under-served areas of the market.
“Our cornerstone commitment to JamJar’s fund will help them to provide successful finance and support to early stage, high-potential UK consumer businesses.”
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