Mushrooms are having a second. Whether or not it’s within the type of a purposeful beverage, utilizing the mushroom root to make various protein, creating leather-like supplies or simply the mushroom itself, the fungi is gaining an viewers.
Spacegoods is the most recent startup to hitch this craze. The London-based wellness model is tapping into purposeful mushrooms and nootropics to create a line of powder blends that it touts enhances power, leisure, temper and normal well-being.
E-commerce entrepreneur Matthew Kelly launched the corporate in April 2022 after constructing an organization known as Neon Seaside that he grew to £10 million however couldn’t stand up to provide chain points through the international pandemic. Within the aftermath, Kelly instructed TechCrunch he was depressed and simply not taking good care of himself.
“I was depressed, gained weight and was drinking too much coffee,” Kelly mentioned. “I started learning about functional mushrooms and trendy brands in America. A lot of people have similar issues with too much coffee and anxiety, so I wanted to stack a lot of those ingredients. And in the U.K., the brands all look the same on the shelf, so I wanted to stand out with something pink.”
Spacegoods’ flagship product, known as “Rainbow Dust,” was created to be like espresso, however with out the post-drink jitters and crashes. Rainbow Mud has 80 milligrams of caffeine and is available in flavors like chocolate, vanilla cinnamon and chocolate orange.
It additionally has an “Astro Dust” product formulated for leisure and sleep. They’re meant to be combined with water, milk, a protein shake or added to night tea.
The 2 formulations embrace vegetation and mushrooms, together with ashwagandha and Cordyceps and Lion’s Mane mushrooms. Lion’s Mane, specifically, was proven to positively influence cognitive perform and temper in younger adults, in keeping with a 2023 Nationwide Institutes of Well being pilot examine.
Within the yr since launching, Spacegoods has attracted greater than 75,000 clients. The corporate is principally direct-to-consumer, by way of its web site and Amazon, and sells in the UK and European markets just like the Netherlands and Germany. Additionally it is in 400 brick-and-mortar shops within the U.Ok., together with Holland & Barrett. Different retailers are within the works for this yr, Kelly mentioned.
In the present day, Spacegoods introduced a £2.5 million ($3.1 million) seed spherical led by 5 Seasons Ventures, with participation from Redrice Ventures, Slingshot Ventures and G-FUND. In whole, the corporate has raised £3 million, which features a pre-seed spherical from angel traders.
Kelly plans to take a position the capital in hiring and accelerating progress. He forecasts that the corporate will be capable to improve income by 3x what it did in 2023. Spacegoods can also be launching extra powder flavors and a gummy product within the coming months.
In backing Spacegoods, Saskia Hoebée, principal at 5 Seasons Ventures, mentioned in an announcement that the corporate is “a first mover in the novel category of mushroom-based energy and supplements.”
“The company operates at the crossroads of three trendy markets: supplements, functional drinks and coffee replacements, all in which high growth is expected in the coming years due to increased consumer demand for clean energy and broader wellness,” Hoebée mentioned.