CAMBRIDGE, MASS.  —  Culture Pop Soda, a functional, probiotic soda brand, has raised $21 million in a Series B funding round led by Enlighten Hospitality with additional investments from former Starbucks chief executive officer, Howard Schultz.

The four-year-old soda brand formulates its sodas from juice, spices and a live probiotic.

“It’s a really clean ingredient list,” said Tom First, CEO and founder of Culture Pop Soda. “They’re a refreshing soda with no sweeteners, no stevia, and no sugar other than the fruit juice.”

First has had his hand in the beverage space since the founding of his first company Nantucket Nectars Juice Co. in 1989. Not only has First founded several beverage brands, he also has sat on boards of other brands like Essentia Water and OWater, and was a managing partner at First Beverage Group.

“I was surprised that of all the categories that have been disrupted or reinvented or rethought, the one that hadn’t had a lot of innovation was carbonated soft drinks,” he said. “The other (soda) players are made with really traditional ingredients and are super sweet with a lot of sugar and not very natural. I thought there was a real opportunity to create a brand and an ingredient platform that appealed to younger consumers. I was drawn to carbonated soft drinks because people love bubbles.”

The investment will help the company focus on growing its retail footprint, adding sales personnel, supporting its distribution network and retailers, and marketing.

“We’ve done regional marketing in the Northeast, which has had impacts and definitely driven velocities for us,” First said. “We’ll be spending this year testing more regions with our advertising campaigns and going more national in 2025.”

The company started building its brand in the natural channels and in specialty grocery. It has since seen growth in conventional grocers as well.

“We have also built a direct-to-consumer business through our own website and through-ecommerce retailers like Amazon and Walmart.com,” First said.

Culture Pop is sold in such retailers as Albertsons, Kroger, Safeway, Meijer, Stop & Shop, Giant Food, Fresh Thyme Market, Walmart, Whole Foods Market, and soon Sprouts Farmers Market in May.

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