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

Nestle acquires US meal delivery service Freshly for $950m

CPG giant Nestlé has acquired Freshly, one of the leading fresh meal delivery services in the US. The deal, which valued Freshly at $950 million, is hoped to bring together Nestlé’s deep understanding of what and how people eat at home, and world-class research and development capabilities with Freshly’s highly specialised consumer analytics platform and distribution network. The goal being, to fuel growth opportunities within the Freshly business and across Nestlé’s portfolio.

&Sisters embarks on crowdfunding campaign to develop menstrual health ecosystem

&SISTERS, a startup which claims to be developing the menstrual health ecosystem of the future, has launched a crowdfunding campaign on Seedrs.

The company, which offers an easy way for users to monitor their cycle, understand and respond to how their body changes, as well as providing access to ethical, sustainable products, is looking to raise £375K. It plans to use the fresh capital to turbocharge its growth even further, with a focus on four specific areas; growing its team, investing in technology, launching new products and raising awareness, and generating sales through advertising and marketing.

Under Armour to sell MyFitnessPal at a loss 

Sportswear behemoth Under Armour has announced plans today to sell MyFitnessPal to Francisco Partners, a leading global private equity firm that specializes in investments in technology and technology-enabled businesses.

The transaction will see the company sell the fitness and food tracking app for $345 million, down from the $475 million it paid for the platform back in 2015.

According to Under Armour, the deal will enable it to better focus on its “target consumer” in the interest of building “a singular, cohesive UA ecosystem.” 

The Naked Market banks $6m in seed funding

The Naked Market, a San Francisco-based CPG brand with a health focus, has closed a $6m seed funding round, with participation from investors including Holtzbrinck Venture,  BEB Capital, Liberty Ventures and others.

According to the startup, which surpassed its 2020 sales target goal by 400%, driven by its burgeoning D2C business, the funding secured in this capital raise will be used to aggressively increase its product line by six additional brands in the next 12 months.

Gwyneth Paltrow invests in cannabis-infused drink brand Cann

Cann, a Los Angeles-based purveyor of cannabis-infused social tonics, has secured investment from a group of actors, musicians, athletes and creators, including Gwyneth Paltrow and Rebel Wilson.

Closing on a five million dollar seed funding round co-led by Imaginary, whose credentials include Skims, Everlane and Daily Harvest, and JM10 Partners in January 2020, Cann has continued to see growth at an unprecedented rate — and in an unprecedented time. Since its inception in 2019, it has become the fastest-growing THC beverage to date with over 2m cans sold, and quarter-over-quarter sales growth for 2020 continuously doubling in numbers. It plans to use the undisclosed funding to help introduce a new wave of consumers to an alcohol alternative.