Actual Veggies has closed a $2.3M round of funding from Electric Feel Ventures, the venture arm of Post Malone's management team, run by Austin Rosen; Big Idea Ventures; Rose Street Capital; former Arsenal and current Inter Miami CF defender, Kieran Gibbs, and other strategic investors. Combined with its previous funding round from Big Idea Ventures and angel contributions, Actual Veggies has secured $2.8M in funding to date.
“Since we launched the company, it’s been an incredible whirlwind and despite the challenges of 2020, we made it a reality,” says Hailey Swartz, Co-founder, and Co-CEO of Actual Veggies. “The growth we have seen over the past few months far exceeded our expectations as we expanded nationally with partners including Sprouts Farmers Market, HungryRoot, Imperfect Foods, Sunbasket, QVC, and FreshDirect. We are humbled by our new partners’ shared excitement and look forward to building off our success to further scale Actual Veggies.”
The company will use the new capital to expand its product assortment, invest in new equipment to streamline production and boost brand awareness through increased marketing efforts. The company currently offers four different SKUs and is already working to expand offerings, including seasonal, limited-edition products, and more.
"Electric Feel sits at the epicenter of development across music, brands, and culture. We are dedicated to elevating authentic individuals and brands," says Austin Rosen, Electric Feel Ventures founder. "It goes without saying, in the entertainment business what you see isn’t always real, and let's be honest, it isn't much different in the food space. But Actual Veggies is real—real food, real flavor, really good! We are excited to back Actual Veggies and the team behind this exciting new brand."
Gibbs adds, "As a professional athlete, I've been keeping tabs on the growth of the plant-based category. Actual Veggies far surpassed my expectations—both in the product's flavor and quality, and I knew immediately that I could get behind this product—and I did."
Unlike other plant-based burgers in the market, Actual Veggies burgers are not trying to replicate the taste of meat, they're letting the natural flavors and nutritional value of real, actual vegetables and legumes speak for themselves. Every chef-crafted quarter-pound, thick-cut Actual Veggies patty is filled with wholesome, veggie-only ingredients that give the patties their vibrant, natural colors and satisfying taste. There are no fillers or preservatives, only fresh vibrant, colorful veggies and ingredients you can actually see and pronounce.
“We initially invested in Actual Veggies because we knew they had a great concept that would fill a significant gap consumers and retailers were looking for, a plant-based burger that not only tastes great but is actually clean and healthy,” says Andrew D. Ive, Founder of Big Idea Ventures. “In just under a year, Actual Veggies has delivered tremendous growth with its clean, healthy and fresh veggie burgers that fill the void. Actual Veggies is in a whole new category of its own.”
About Actual Veggies
Founded in March 2020 and headquartered in New York City, Actual Veggies is redefining the plant-based protein industry with its line of veggie-only burgers. The four different varieties of its quarter-pound, chef-crafted veggie burger patties are made with only fresh, actual vegetables, grains, and a signature spice blend: The Actual Black Burger, The Actual Orange Burger, The Actual Green Burger, and The Actual Purple Burger. Each patties’ vibrant color is indicative of the vegetables used in each burger. Actual Veggies is a portfolio company of Big Idea Ventures, an investor in up-and-coming food and agricultural companies. Actual Veggies can be found at Sprouts Farmers Market, HungryRoot, Imperfect Foods, FreshDirect, Sunbasket, and online at www.actualveggies.com.
