Drizly Group raises $50m in funding

Leading alcohol e-commerce and delivery group Drizly has raised US$50 million in funding.

The Series C funding round was led by Avenir, a New York-based investment firm, with participation from Tiger Global and other existing investors.

Drizly has doubled its number of retail partners since 1 January 2020. The company has grown by more than 350% this year compared with 2019, while achieving ‘sustained profitability’.

Andrew Sugrue, co-founder of Avenir, said: “As the largest alcohol delivery marketplace in the US, Drizly is rapidly bringing the US$120 billion off-premise alcohol market online.

“With its laser focus on alcohol delivery, Drizly provides a best-in-class consumer experience with the widest selection, best prices and fastest delivery times, while enabling retailers, wholesalers and brands to thrive in the growing online market.”

Drizly forecasts 20% of off-trade alcohol purchases will move online within the next five years, compared with less than 2% in early 2020.

The company is present in 235 markets across North America and has a network of 3,300 independent and chain retail partners.

Cory Rellas, Drizly Group’s CEO, said: “We’ve spent years methodically building the three-tier compliant e-commerce foundation for the alcohol category – a place where consumers love to shop and that retailers and brands now deem critical to their e-commerce growth strategies.

“This investment by Avenir, alongside other existing investors, is a vote of confidence in our industry leadership and enables us to further accelerate our product and customer growth. We look forward to further building out our offering for retailers and brands while continuing to provide a consumer experience that comprises the best place to shop for your favourite beer, wine and spirits.”