Spearhead – a Black-owned, African spirits group – has entered the U.S. market with a new investment, which will power the company’s next phase of growth, following a strong reception in European markets.
The company recently received $3 million, funded by Pendulum, a strategic investment and advisory firm for founders and leaders or color. The funding is allowing Spearhead to accelerate its global reach – including in the United States – and introduce new product lines and scale marketing efforts.
Launched in March 2021 by Co-Founders Chris Frederick and Damola Timeyin, Spearhead is a multi-award-winning business with a growing portfolio of premium brands that include Bayab Gin and Vusa Vodka. After noticing a lack of diverse representation in the spirits category, as well as a beverages and spirits that highlight Africa’s heritage and the quality and craft of the continent, Spearhead was born.
The essence of Spearhead’s offering is a line of premium products with true African provenance, representing the best of the continent’s craft and produce, that capture the vibrancy and creativity found in all corners of Africa. The brand’s spirits are distilled with local botanicals from across the continent, highlighting unique flavors of many of Africa's different terrains and countries.
Spearhead’s Bayab Gin won Gold at the San Francisco Wine and Spirits competition in 2022 and Silver at the San Francisco Wine and Spirits competition in 2021. The brand’s Vusa Vodka won Gold at the San Francisco Wine and Spirits Competition in 2021 and Silver at the International Wine and Spirits Competition in 2020. Vusa was also rated Best Vodka by Good Housekeeping in 2022.
“With a lack of Black-owned African spirits brands exported globally, we have made it our mission to connect the world to Africa through our spirits,” said Frederick, who’s also the CEO. “Our brands not only increase diversity and challenge cultural bias in the sector but being produced on the African continent allows us to show the world what Africans have always known about its culturally and resource rich continent, with products that compete on the world stage in taste and quality, as well as innovation. Pendulum’s investment will allow us to realize this vision globally. We are beyond excited about the partnership and their belief in this mission and the power of the African continent.”
Spearhead will also be joined by a group of strategic partners, including Kenny Burns, lifestyle specialist and long-time spirits industry executive with prior roles at CIROC and Grey Goose and equity stakes in Uncle Nearest and most recently Spearhead, and Donae Burston, founder and CEO of La Fete du Rose, the first entirely Black-owned rosé brand from St. Tropez, France.
Robbie Robinson, co-founder and CEO at Pendulum, and Helen Wang, a senior associate at the investment firm, said in a statement: “The celebration of the African diaspora is alive and well in the U.S., and we believe this authentic enthusiasm translates meaningfully to the spirits category, where community and storytelling are central to any brand. We couldn’t be more excited to work with Spearhead and its founders, Chris and Damola, to amplify the story of a truly differentiated platform that aims to embody and honor the diaspora. With this investment, we’re also thrilled to partner with Kenny Burns and Donae Burston, long-time industry veterans, to propel Spearhead’s growth and launch into the U.S. market.”
With 35,000 units sold since their launch to market in 2021, Spearhead is a pioneering, Black-owned African spirits company with a global reach. Spearhead has also amassed accolades and on-trade accounts from London to New York, with a pipeline of new launches to come, including a much-anticipated rum and limited-edition flavored lines, which will debut later this year.
As a company, Spearhead aims to continue to turn the dial towards fairer representation in the beverage and spirits market and redefine the industry for good. The group will also continue its investment in community development across South Africa. In partnership with the organization uMthombo, Spearhead will use its recent investment to help uMthombo get young people off the streets and provide them with life-skills training and a pathway to employment.
Spearhead’s Bayab Gin is a premium, copper distilled gin from Africa. Distilled using Zambian Baobab from the Baobab “tree of life” and bountiful African botanicals of juniper berries, coriander, rosemary, cinnamon, coarse salt, lemon peel, baobab and orange peel, it is then blended with the purest water, sourced from the Midlands Kwazulu-Natal.
Vusa Vodka is a premium, copper distilled cane vodka from Africa. Distilled in small batches using a copper still gives it a silky-smooth finish of exceptional quality. Vusa uses the sugarcane that grows naturally in the Kwazulu-natal subtropical climate, making it a naturally sweet-tasting vodka, and its unique filtration process uses the shells of the Baobab fruit to contribute to its crisp finish. The company said it’s “ideal for cocktails.”
To learn more about Spearhead and its brands, visit SpearheadSpirits.com, VusaVodka.com and BayabGin.com. to learn more about Pendulum visit PendulumHoldings.com.
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