Cappello’s, a maker of frozen grain-free pizza, pasta and cookie dough, on September 29 announced the closing of a significant Series B Funding Round led by Alliance Consumer Growth (ACG) and Finn Capital Partners.
The Denver, Colorado-based company has positioned itself in the forefront of clean-ingredient innovation for nearly a decade. Using almond flour as a primary ingredient, Cappello’s has changed the idea of what traditional pizza, pasta and cookie dough could look like by taking grains out of the recipe equation. Co-founders and co-chief executive officers Ben Frohlichstein and Stacey Marcellus focused on real food ingredients and turned traditional comfort foods into nutritionally relevant, lower carbohydrate, higher protein creations to be enjoyed by all consumers.
Cappello’s has found considerable success in the frozen aisles of supermarkets as well as in natural food stores, launching into 30% more outlets in 2020 than in 2019. Its biggest retail partners are in the natural products sector.
The newly raised funds will accelerate growth by allowing the brand to fuel the expansion of offerings as well as drive additional distribution in key markets and connect with new consumers. The brand is in an ideal place for growth as frozen pizza, one of Cappello’s key categories, is a $5.9 billion segment that has seen sales advance 30% over the last six months as food shoppers have stocked up on convenience foods during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Cappello’s has realized 74% sales growth in the last year. Now the fresh infusion of investment capital will enable the company to hire additional talent to help the brand continue to meet new demand.
“As we close this round of funding, we want to thank our partners for their support and we’re so elated that we can collaborate with them to propel our vision of offering delicious, simple, grain-free foods to all,” said Frohlichstein. “With our sights set on new distribution and innovation, we are closer than ever to reaching families across the nation that are looking for convenient, clean ingredient meal solutions that never compromise on taste or texture.”
“Cappello’s is one of the most exciting emerging food brands, and we are thrilled to have this opportunity to be a partner to the business and the team,” said ACG Vice President Daniel Hodges. “Their effectiveness in connecting with consumers is illustrated by impressive growth across various sales channels, and we look forward to supporting the team going forward.”
