Western Australian distillery Old Young’s has set equity crowdfunding records in Australia, having attained its target $2.7 million in funding in less than 24 hours, conducted through crowdfunding platform Birchal.
The equity raised is noted to be the biggest raise achieved in Australia for this financial year and the biggest alcohol raise ever in the country.
The milestone also comes in the wake of Old Young’s having won two major awards at The Icons of Gin competition in London held last 24 February, namely Craft Producer of the Year and Brand Innovator of the Year. This is the first time an Australian distillery has won Craft Producer of the Year and only the second time an Australian gin producer has won Brand Innovator of the year.
The awards were announced right in the middle of Old Young’s preparations for the crowdfunding campaign. As a result, online sales for the brand spiked by 560 per cent. In addition, expressions of interest in the crowdfunding raise almost doubled from 1,722 to 3,303, with an average EOI investment amount of $3,633, three times the average Birchal figure of $1,300.
“To win it midway through a capital raise is biblical – I swear someone is looking after me above,” said James Young of Old Young’s Distillery. “Setting all these records is icing on the cake of an already spectacular month.”
Matt Vitale, CEO of equity crowdfunding platform Birchal said, “Craft breweries have a history of performing very well on Birchal, and that’s because their fans are fiercely loyal and want their favourite beer to flourish. The runaway success of craft distiller Old Young’s not only continues this trend but has taken it up a notch – it’s the biggest alcohol raise Australia has ever seen! James Young and his team ran a textbook crowdfunding campaign – the integration of investor communications, PR, social media marketing, an entertaining and informative investor video, and investor webinars, kept potential shareholders engaged from beginning to end. And now they’ve set all these amazing records – they should be really proud!”
Old Young’s has achieved an Average Growth of 90 per cent per annum over the last six years since 2016, which Young attributes to the success of its signature gin Old Young’s 1829 and the launch of its unique gin subscription service, The Juniper Society during the pandemic wherein each month, subscribers get a brand new, never to be repeated gin for $59.
The money raised will be used to employ an sales team to help establish the brand in Australia’s east coast, as well as build international export markets. Old Young’s will also the funds to triple production capacity and further boost the subscriber base for The Juniper Society.
Young is also planning to build an iconic building in the Swan Valley he describes as a ‘Cathedral of Gin’ and work on a modern classic gin with ingredients sourced from the Western Australian town of Gingin.
“The huge level of support we’ve received is incredibly gratifying,” said Young. “I’ve been speaking to investors throughout this process and so many of them have followed us right back to when we launched in 2016! To raise this amount of money in such a short time in tricky economic times is a testament to the creativity and passion we bring to work every day. I’m so excited for our plans and to have 855 new investors to share that ride with!”
