More than ever, consumers are focusing on wellness, originality, and authenticity. The booming hard seltzer category has proven the demand for light alcoholic beverages, however, based on our research most hard seltzer is produced by the same giant corporations fermenting the same refined sugars. We believe the beverages they produce do not adequately address a significant and growing group of adult drinkers (millennials) looking for authenticity and originality.

* Source, Source, Source

Shacksbury has seen strong growth since our inception in 2013. Between 2015 and 2019, we experienced an 89% revenue CAGR pre-COVID, and saw $2.2 million in sales in 2020. In July 2020 we finished phase II of our new production facility. We now produce all of our beverages in-house, and we have the capacity to expand to 1 million cases per year.

Likewise, we have steadily built a distribution system, a notoriously challenging task in the alcohol industry, that includes over 30 total states, with six new distributors added in the last twelve months.

Our authentic craft ciders are critically acclaimed, winning the Good Food Award in 2015, 2016 and 2018, taking into account our social and environmental responsibility along with our stellar craftsmanship and flavor. Shacksbury was also named a Top 10 “Brewery” of 2019 by Hop Culture and, our co-founders Colin Davis and David Dolginow were recognized by Wine Enthusiast 40 under 40.

We have been fortunate enough to collaborate with world-renowned food and beverage brands such as Momofuku Restaurant Group, Modern Times Beer, Broc Cellars, WhistlePig Whiskey, and Jasper Hill Cheese. This recognition has allowed us to reach a consumer base including beer drinkers, wine fans and foodies. "I don’t drink cider, I drink Shacksbury" is a thing we hear a lot, and it puts us in a unique position to evolve our brand to focus on the fast growing categories of canned wine and beyond beer beverages.

The total potential market for "progressive adult beverages" (beyond beer) including cider, FMB, canned wine and hard seltzer represents a $5.9 billion opportunity that has grown 30% year-over-year (source). The craft market is approximately $1.5 billion and growing in tandem with the beyond beer market (source).

Source: Nielsen research; Brewers Association; Note: Total market size measured off-premise channels (52-weeks ending 12/28/2019); Flavored Malt Beverages inclusive of hard seltzers, ciders, teas, and kombucha; Applies 2019 craft beer market share of total beer market to the total $5.9BN FMB, RTD, and wine pack market to calculate our approximate addressable market

This sizable high-growth opportunity directly addresses recent consumer demands. For instance, many subcategories within the beyond beer space, such as canned wine and spirits-based cocktails, are experiencing greater than 40% year-over-year growth, as the products within this market meet the needs of health-conscious consumers seeking convenience. (source)

* Stars indicate new distribution in the past 12 months.

Over the past eight years, we have dialed in our operations, resulting in gross margin profitability since 2016. As of July 2020, after contracting out our canning and bottling operations for the first seven years, we opened our new facility, which is capable of expanding to 1 million cases per year. Through this newly added infrastructure and our growing scale, we expect to reduce our overhead and consumable expenses per case, consequently increasing our profitability. For instance, through bulk purchasing, our average can prices dropped from $0.28 per unit for sleeved cans to $0.15 per unit for printed cans, resulting in considerable savings.

Our operational strategy is backed by a thoughtful sales model, with two distinct sales channels: wholesale distribution and a direct-to-consumer platform. We have partnerships with wholesale distributors in 30+ states, including several large houses, as well as many nimble and talented independents.

Likewise, we have relationships with key regional and national retailers, like Trader Joe’s, Whole Foods, Wegman's, Hannaford, HEB, and Total Wine, and independents like Bi-Rite, City Market, and Gold Star Beer. On the bar and restaurant side, we sell to a wide range of places, ranging from Michelin star spots like Gramercy Tavern, Blue Hill, and Taco María to volume keg placements like the Newport Folk Festival, Sour Duck, and Alamo Drafthouse.

Taking into account our ability to scale, distribution network, and retail partners, a key aspect of this raise will be to build out our sales team to fully leverage these assets. We believe the moment is ripe to hire several experienced sales people in key markets.

Our direct-to-consumer sales channels consist of a tasting room in Vermont and an established e-commerce platform. Although we primarily focus on wholesale distribution, our DTC model has seen tremendous growth, with the e-commerce platform alone growing over 221% year-over-year. This overall sales strategy has resulted in an +85% revenue CAGR from 2015-2019, and +50% YoY revenue growth in 2019.

Each fall harvest since 2013, we forage for wild apples that yield dry, food friendly ciders that evoke the style of cider that was consumed before Prohibition. We have sampled thousands of apples and fermented cider from hundreds of unique trees. Of those we have propagated 11 wild varieties via grafting in our own orchard as well as with several local orchards, marking the beginning of our “Lost Apple Orchard.”  The limited release ciders that come from the Lost Apple Project are often sold exclusively via our direct-to-consumer channels, like our Cider Club, tasting room, and online shop.

We plan to continue on the path to building nationally recognized brands. We already sell to many of the top-performing retail chains and aim to continue with expansion to chains such as Costco, Target, and Kroger. With this raise, we are planning to invest in expanding our sales force and are confident that our reputation will attract top talent. This expanded sales team will be able to take full advantage of our impressive distribution network, retail partnerships, and delicious products.

Our goal is to serve as a trusted “flavor guide,” serving consumers beverages they love but didn’t even know they wanted. We will beat the big guys to the next trend and have fun doing it. We plan to double down on our rapidly growing cider club and digital presence to build closer and deeper relationships with our most devoted fans.

We believe that we have the infrastructure, experienced team, and proven track record to deliver on these goals.

Our team includes experienced and passionate people across the restaurant and beverage industries. Shacksbury was founded by Colin Davis and David Dolginow, lifelong cider champions and entrepreneurs. 

Our goal from the start has been to create jobs and build a team and culture we’re proud of. Our staff of beverage enthusiasts and purveyors of community is behind the constant growth of Shacksbury.

We’re proud of the collaborative community we’ve built with our friends and colleagues in the food and beverage world, fostering yearly experiences through our “Harvest Camp” to upkeep our cider-making legacy.

Shacksbury grew as an award-winning cidery, distributed across mainstream retailers as a result of hard work, a genuine interest in our craft, and our collaborative spirit. 

Millennials are now driving a consumer shift to new, wellness oriented, “beyond beer” beverages. Shacksbury has proven itself to be at the cutting edge of drink creation. Our trusted recipes, diverse but focused portfolio of brands, and expansive distribution are primed to address this shift.

We believe we have  a tremendous foundation to work from. We’d love for you to be a part of the Shacksbury community as we write the next chapter of our company’s story.