• Amara Organic Foods

  Participated · Series B · Mar 2024

  Amara develops organic shelf-stable baby food and toddler snacks using a branded Nutrient Protection Technology, a proprietary dehydration process designed to preserve texture and flavor when water or breast milk is added. Founded in 2017 by Jessica Sturzenegger and chef Vicki Johnson and based in San Francisco, the brand sells direct-to-consumer (its website and Amazon) and through more than 1,000 retail stores including Walmart and Sprouts. Its products have won recognition such as the Purity Award from the Clean Label Project and placement in Good Housekeeping’s “9 Best Organic Baby Food Brands of 2024.” Amara has benefited from viral word-of-mouth on TikTok, which has driven demand and informed the company’s emphasis on forecasting and supply-chain coordination. The company has invested heavily in intellectual property and operational capability to scale, and CEO Jessica Sturzenegger says the hardest part has been keeping up with demand. With recent funding, the company plans to amplify market presence, increase grocery and online distribution, and expand production and product lines. Amara develops proprietary technology to lock in taste, texture and nutrients into shelf-stable pouches of fresh baby and children’s meals for ages up to seven. It launched its first products in Whole Foods in 2017 after three years of product development and now offers 10 SKUs, including a baby-food line that mixes with breast milk, formula or water and Yogurt Smoothie Melts with no added sugar. The company’s meals start as low as $1.80 per meal, positioned below many refrigerated or frozen competitors that run $3–$7 per meal. Amara had grown distribution from roughly 100 to 1,000 stores prior to the raise and sells via its website, Amazon, Sprouts nationwide and grocery stores mostly in California. Financially, the company was profitable on every order and growing three times year over year organically before the Series A. Management plans to use the new funding to hire, accelerate product development, increase brand awareness and expand grocery distribution over the next 12 months. Amara uses a proprietary technology to lock in the taste, texture, and nutrients of fresh whole foods into convenient, shelf-stable pouches and snacks. The company’s baby meals are 100% organic whole fruit and vegetable blends designed to mix with breast milk, formula, or water for a gentle transition to solids. Amara recently expanded into toddler snacks with Organic Smoothie Melts, the company’s first melt-in-mouth snacks with no added sugar, offered in plant-based and yogurt-based varieties and shaped to encourage grasping and chewing. The Smoothie Melts are shelf-stable for up to two years and recommended for ages 8 months to 4 years. Amara sells through its website, Amazon, and select grocery retailers, and the brand is available in over 1,000 stores. In March the company secured $2M in seed funding from key investors described in the article.

• Immi

  Led · Series A · Mar 2023

  Immi develops plant-based instant ramen that is lower in carbohydrates and higher in protein than traditional instant noodles, initially launching three flavors: Spicy “Beef,” Tom Yum “Shrimp,” and Black Garlic “Chicken.” The company has seen strong direct-to-consumer demand, grew revenue over six times year‑over‑year, and has sold out seven times since 2021. Immi expanded into retail in 2022, launching at Whole Foods, Wegmans and The Fresh Market, and its private tasting community has grown from about 4,000 to 6,000 members. The company plans to unveil nine additional flavors and is experimenting with another 12 potential flavors, plus exploring other products outside of ramen. Product roadmap work includes noodle texture and cook-time improvements and new formats such as cups. Management plans to use new capital to round out its executive team, fund product development research, and expand retail distribution nationwide. Immi produces plant-based, low-carb, low-sodium instant ramen cups that average 22 grams of protein and come in Black Garlic “Chicken,” Tom Yum “Shrimp,” and Spicy “Beef.” The founders, Kevin Lee and Kevin Chanthasiriphan, went full-time on the company in 2019 and spent several years on R&D to reformulate a product that replicates traditional broth taste, mouthfeel, texture and slurpability. The company launched its products in January and sold out inventory in the first month; it has since sold over 10,000 orders and built a 4,000-member community used for rapid taste testing. Immi plans to expand its product line with more flavors and noodle types and to develop additional Asian food products like snacks and confections with cleaner ingredients. The team is focused on marketing and distribution growth, including expanding into wholesale channels and online grocers and exploring international sales. The company is hiring for key executive roles and working to optimize its supply chain while continuing product iteration based on customer feedback.

No current team members are available.