Cash Flow: Mars Acquires KIND, Spring Health Raises $76m, Plant-Based Brand Mother Raw Banks $6.1m

The game-changing investment, acquisition and funding news impacting the industry and driving the business of wellness this week.

Cure Hydration secures $2.6m and expands retail footprint

Functional hydration brand Cure Hydration has completed a $2.6m seed funding round led by Lerer Hippeau with additional participation from M3 Ventures, Litani Ventures, Andy Roddick, Nas, Matthew Dellavedova, Philip Krim, co-founder & CEO of Casper, Nick Green, CEO of Thrive Market, and others.

The company, which also expanded its retail footprint to stores including CVS, Walmart, and Whole Foods, plans to use the new capital to scale its team, build customer awareness in the market, and develop new functions and flavours.

HelloFresh acquires ready-to-eat meal company Factor75 in a deal worth up to $277m

Meal kit delivery company HelloFresh has agreed to acquire Factor75 –  a fully-prepared meal delivery service combining health, convenience and restaurant-quality taste – in a deal that could reach $277m.

The acquisition brings together HelloFresh’s global market expertise in delivering fresh ingredients to customers’ doorsteps across 14 countries with Factor’s proven success in ready-to-eat meals. 

Functional Food brand HVMN banks $5.5m

Keto brand, Health Via Modern Nutrition (HVMN), has banked $5.5m in a funding round including entrepreneur Tony Hsieh, musician Zac Brown, Joe Montana’s Liquid2 Ventures and others.

The US startup, founded in 2014, sells a range of functional F&B products, including collagen and MCT powders, snack bars and a ketone ester drink. 

The capital has been earmarked to accelerate research and development of nutrition technologies and products across the spectrum of ketosis.

Mars acquires ‘better for you’ snack brand KIND

CPG giant Mars has announced it will acquire ‘better for you’ snack maker KIND to create one organisation operating across 35 countries, functioning as a distinct and separate business within the Mars Family of Companies. 

This provides the opportunity to further the KIND Promise, a set of nutrition principles that have guided the company’s innovation since its founding, and KIND’s mission to create a kinder world, said the company in a statement.

Spring Health raises $76m for personalised employer mental health solutions

Spring Health, a leading provider of behavioural health benefits for employee mental wellbeing, has announced the closing of a $76m Series B led by worldwide investment firm Tiger Global. Other investors included GingerBread Capital and Operator Partner.

The funds will be used to further refine Spring Health’s Precision Mental Healthcare approach, using cutting-edge technology to match each employee to the most effective care for them. 

Connected fitness startup Vitruvian raises $2.5m

Perth-based connected fitness startup Vitruvian has raised $2.5m in a seed round led by Evolution Wellness – a South-East Asian business with a portfolio of influential fitness and wellness brands.

The cash injection will allow the company to ramp up production of its strength training device, the V-Form Trainer, which opens to the global retail market this week after months of demand.

Plant-based Startup Mother Raw closes $6.1m funding round

Maker of plant-powered dressings Mother Raw has closed a $6.1m Series A financing round led by new investor Forage Capital Partners, alongside Export Development Canada and existing investor Whitecap Venture Partners. 

The new capital will help to further propel its rapid growth across North America. The brand plans to expand its distribution footprint, increase R&D efforts for new product innovation, and amplify marketing and sales initiatives.