Appearances at leading summer events such as cricket at Lord’s and a Cornish music festival have made for a successful season for a Jersey spirit brand – which is set to close an investment drive after moving almost 65% beyond its original target of £250,000.
Tidal Rum, which is made by blending aged Caribbean spirits with the rare seaweed Pepper Dulse, harvested around the Jersey coastline, was available to spectators enjoying the recent England v West Indies cricket test, and this weekend will accompany some well-known names in pop music at the Rock Oyster festival in Cornwall.
Not only will the rum be served to attendees at the festival in Rock, near Padstow, as they enjoy live performances by the likes of the Human League and Sugababes, but Tidal has also pushed the buttons of investors during a recent crowdfunding campaign.
The investment drive is set to close this week after raising more than £400,000 via startup investment platform Seedrs.
Harry Coulthard, who started the venture with Jersey-born business partner Ben Clyde-Smith while the duo were students at Manchester University, said the intention was to speed up the rum’s roll-out in international markets.
Pictured: Harry Coulthard and Ben Clyde-Smith.
He said: “This investment has opened up real export opportunities, solidifying our position in France, and opening up opportunities in Greece, Portugal, Spain, Germany, Malta and the Caribbean.”
Tidal Rum was launched in 2019, and earlier this year the founders revealed ambitions to increase annual sales by 200% to 100,000 bottles in 2024 – and to double again in 2025.
Although the online fundraising campaign is on the point of closing, Mr Coulthard said the company still hoped to attract further backing from islanders who may wish to invest or share connections with bars and distributors. Contact details are available here.
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