Pernod Ricard has headed to New Zealand for the latest move by its brand incubation unit, where Convivialité Ventures has invested in alcohol-free beverage producer AF Drinks.
In the same week as the group acquired a stake in Canada’s RTD brand owner, Ace Beverage Group, Convivialité Ventures has announced an unspecified spend on three-year-old AF. The start-up, which expanded to the US in February, will use the injection to accelerate its roll-out in the country.
The namesake brand is called Free AF in the US, where it has a nationwide presence in Sprouts Famers Market’s outlets. Back home, the New Zealand footprint comprises 11 SKUs that are available online.
“We are extremely excited to have Convivialité Ventures as a partner in AF,” said founder Lisa King. “The team at Convivialité Ventures … understands the scale of opportunity within this rapidly growing category.”
The company cited figures from IWSR Drinks Market Analysis that found no- & low-alcohol sales in ten unspecified “key global markets” broke NZD11bn [US$6.8bn] last year, up from NZD8bn in 2018. “The US is forecast to grow by 25.4% through to 2026,” AF added.
Last month, Convivialité Ventures bought a “minority share in circular packaging start-up Ecospirits.
