UK alcoholic tea brand Noveltea has received £1.4 million investment from the North East Venture Fund (NEVF) to expand its business.
Noveltea creates an infusion of alcohol and tea that takes inspiration from cultures around the world and is reportedly popular with customers in the UK, Germany and China.
The capital will enable Noveltea to target new overseas markets and expand its product range, as well as create 20 new jobs at the company’s base in Newcastle.
Co-founder of Noveltea, Vincent Efferoth, said: “Since we launched Noveltea in 2017, we’ve continued to grow the brand and expand overseas. The investment secured this week and increased profile of the brand is allowing us to turbo charge our plans in 2021 and define the alcoholic tea category.”
Noveltea’s latest investment has come from NEVF, which is managed by Mercia – the UK government’s Future Fund – and the crowdfunding site CrowdCube.
The news comes as the drinks brand witnessed a record-breaking weekend of sales and a waiting list of new customers from around the globe.
Within 10 minutes of appearing on BBC Saturday Kitchen, Noveltea says it was greeted by 50,000 new website visitors looking to purchase its teapots, warmers and Celebrate, its winter spiced tea with Scotch whisky.
“Our limited edition Celebrate tea and whisky blend launched earlier this year due to growing interest from customers for a festive drink and we couldn’t be happier with the results and sales,” added Efferoth.
The founders, Vincent Efferoth and Lucas Passia, first appeared on BBC TV series Dragon’s Den in 2018. After rejecting offers from three of the dragons, they went on to secure over £340,000 through a crowdfunding campaign.
Thea Tebble of Mercia said: “Noveltea is a premium beverage in a range of unique blends. Its quality product and ambitious management team is a great foundation for future growth. The business has already achieved impressive traction and Mercia’s support will help it expand into new markets.”
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