The Ryl Company closes $20M Series C led by Purchase Capital
What's the deal? The Ryl Company, parent of iced tea brand Ryl Tea, has closed US$12.9M Series C led by Purchase CapitalDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →. The funds will go toward retail expansion, direct store delivery (DSD) buildout, product innovation, and team growth across operations, sales, and brand.
Why now? Ryl Tea posted 157% year-over-year growth while the broader $4.5B canned and bottled tea category declined, according to Circana data. The company also recently signed a multi-year licensing partnership with The Hershey CompanyDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →.
Industry observers are calling this tea's "modern" moment — the same shift that already reshaped soda, energy, and hydration. For the first time, dollar growth from emerging tea brands is outpacing the dollar decline of legacy players.
Ready-to-drink tea enjoys roughly 81% household penetration, but its shopper base skews Gen-X and Boomer. Ryl Tea over-indexes with female Gen-Z and Millennial consumers, bringing new buyers into a category that legacy brands have largely left unrefreshed.
"Our mission is to help bring a new generation of consumers into the tea aisle," said Blodin Ukella, founder and chief executive officer of The Ryl Company. "This round gives us the opportunity to fuel that momentum."
What could go wrong? The better-for-you beverage space is crowded and fiercely competitive. Ryl Tea's growth comes off a small base — sustaining triple-digit expansion as it scales nationally will be far harder. And legacy tea giants with deeper pockets could wake up and launch their own modern lines at any time.
The signal: Purchase Capital structured this investment through a dedicated SPV (Ryl Growth Partners), a format typically reserved for high-conviction, concentrated bets rather than routine portfolio plays. Dealroom classifies The Ryl Company at the "breakout" growth stage — a designation that, combined with 157% year-over-year growth against a declining category, mirrors the early trajectory of brands like Olipop and Celsius before they crossed into mainstream distribution.
Read more: Yahoo Finance
