Cure, a hydration brand, now valued at $22M after securing new funding for growth plans.
Summary
Cure, a functional hydration brand, is expanding its retail presence almost four-fold in 2023, closing on $5.6 million in Series A funding, and rounding out its leadership team. The company is carving out a unique niche in the $10 billion functional drink mix market that has exploded in the past 12 months due to consumer behavior towards more environmentally-friendly products. Cure uses clean, plant-based ingredients like coconut water powder and pink Himalayan salt, which differentiates it from other drink mix companies that use cane sugar, dextrose, high-fructose corn syrup, and synthetic and artificial ingredients.Cure founder and CEO Lauren Picasso touts the brand as the only female-founded electrolyte brand and considers Liquid I.V. The Series A was led by Lerer Hippeau, which also led Cures seed round, and joined by a group of new and existing investors, including Valedor Partners, Simple Food Ventures, Great Oaks Venture Capital, Joyance Partners, Silas Capital, and Kim Clijsters.Cure intends to invest the new capital in faster retail expansion, growing its leadership team, acquiring new customers, and developing new products, including a bulk jar option that subscriber customers have been requesting. The company recently hired Laura Kendrick, former chief marketing officer at SmartyPants, and Stacey Gillespie, former vice president of innovation at Gaia Herbs, to help scale distribution and overall revenue.