Spirits company Innovatus pitches to Growthdeck investors for £1.2m

Innovatus Drinks, which owns Horse Guards gin, is aiming to raise £1.2 million through private investors to fund its “ambitious” expansion plans.

The spirits company is raising funds through private equity firm Growthdeck, and will use the capital to fund the launch of a number of new products including a smoked rum, two scotch whiskies and a mezcal, as well as growing its distribution networks and e-commerce opportunities.

Horse Guards gin, which entered the UK market last year and will be the first to be relaunched, is stocked by UK wholesalers LWC and Matthew Clark as well as Home House in London, The Ritz, Alain Roux’s Waterside Inn in Bray, No1 Lombard and all bars at the Windsor races.

The brand is currently exported to Abu Dhabi, France, Spain and Austria, and is sold and fulfilled via Amazon.

Innovatus has access to 100 brands, valued at £3.6 million, which it aims to relaunch over the coming years.

Gary Robins, Head of Business Development at Growthdeck, said the company is “well-placed to tap consumer demand for boutique spirits.

“The Horse Guards brand has already benefitted from the ‘ginaissance’, and the business will soon be ready to deliver quality products to consumers of rum and mescal.”

Innovatus is projected to record revenues of £620,000 this year, and plans to increase its turnover fourfold each year, reaching just over £10 million by the time of Growthdeck’s planned departure from the business in 2023.

Growthdeck helped Cambridge-based gin label Pinkster secure £600,000 investment in 2016, adding that the business’ investment is performing “above expectations.” It completed a second round of crowdfunding at the end of 2017, this time valued at £16 million.