Recess Will Use The Funds to Grow the Team, Scale the Brand, and Accelerate Its Growth

Recess, the category pioneer and leader of the relaxation beverage space, is excited to announce the closing of its Series B funding round of $30M and the hiring of former Nutrabolt (C4 Energy, Bloom) Global Chief Commercial Officer, Kyle Thomas, as President & Co-CEO.

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Kyle Thomas (Left) and Ben Witte (Right)

The $30M Series B round – led by CAVU Consumer Partners, with participation from Rocana, Midnight Ventures, Torch Capital, Doehler Ventures, KAS Venture Partners, Vanquish, and Craig Kallman – and the addition of Thomas sets the stage for Recess’ next chapter and will enable the company to invest in scaling its organization, support retail expansion, and increase its marketing efforts to drive accelerated growth in the years to come.

Recess is CAVU’s next bet in the beverage space since poppi, the category defining modern soda that was acquired by Pepsi for $1.95 billion earlier this year.

“There’s a $25 billion-plus energy drink market in the U.S. built on stimulation, and we believe there needs to be a counterweight built on relaxation. Recess is the restorative alternative consumers are seeking, providing functional beverages that put mental wellness and balance first,” said Jared Jacobs, Partner at CAVU Consumer Partners. “Recess isn’t about powering through the day — it’s about being more mindful within it. We’re thrilled to partner with Ben and the team to help scale Recess from category pioneer to the definitive household name in modern relaxation.”

“Consumers today are looking for products that do more for them, and Recess is the perfect next bet for CAVU within the functional beverage space,” said Brett Thomas, Co-Founder and Managing Partner at CAVU Consumer Partners. “We believe relaxation is the next frontier and resonates deeply with today’s overstimulated generations. With the incredible addition of Co-CEO Kyle Thomas, we couldn’t be more excited to be a part of the Recess revolution.”

Kyle Thomas is a 25-year beverage industry veteran who spent more than a decade at Coca-Cola as a leader in its Emerging Brands division, and joined Nutrabolt in 2021 where he architected the operating plan and led the organization that enabled the C4 beverage business to scale from tens of millions in sales to nearly $1 billion today, and most recently led the incredibly successful launch of Bloom Energy and Bloom Pop.

“Recess is at the forefront of what I believe will become one of the next major beverage spaces — functional relaxation beverages and alcohol alternatives,” said Kyle Thomas, President & Co-CEO of Recess. “I am incredibly excited to partner with Ben to help fulfill the incredible potential that the Recess brand and business has. I’ve had the privilege of helping scale platform brands like C4 and Bloom across categories, and I see that same potential here. The foundation Ben and the team have built positions Recess to continue to lead in this emerging space that they have defined and pioneered — and that’s what makes this opportunity so exciting. My immediate focus will be building organizational capability and capacity along with the right commercial systems to scale Recess into the next iconic modern beverage company.”

The combination of CAVU’s investment and Thomas’ addition to the Recess team speak to the strong performance of the Recess brand platform, as well as the significant opportunity that lies ahead for Recess to scale as a result of the growing consumer demand for products that enhance mental wellness, support relaxation and stress relief, enable alcohol moderation, and improve sleep.

Recess launched in late 2018 as the pioneer CBD beverage, but has since expanded significantly beyond its original product line, with 95%+ of its sales coming from the magnesium-based Recess Mood line which is the leading functional relaxation and mood enhancing beverage brand, and, most recently, the Recess Zero Proof Craft Mocktail line which is the leading RTD Mocktail brand.

“The vision for Recess has always been to drive the development of the Relaxation space and the various sub-categories that would emerge within it by creating a portfolio of products all designed to help people relax, unwind, and socialize in healthier ways,” said Benjamin Witte, Founder and Co-CEO of Recess. “The Recess journey has been one filled with many twists, turns and challenges – but I am proud of all that we have accomplished over the past seven years and the strong foundation that we have established. We are now entering a fundamentally new chapter of the Recess journey and I am incredibly excited to partner with Kyle and the CAVU team to set the Recess business up for accelerated growth, and to positively impact people on a much larger scale.”

Recess is currently sold in over 15,000 stores across the country including Target, HEB, Kroger, Sprouts, Trader Joes, and Whole Foods; and is also the largest alcohol alternative brand on Amazon. Since its launch, Recess has revolutionized the beverage industry by carving out a space for relaxation within the broader functional beverage set and driving the development of the ready to drink mocktail set at major retailers across the US.

ABOUT RECESS

Recess launched in 2018, and has been creating functional drinks and supplements to help people feel calm and balanced ever since. The Recess beverage collection spans three lines: Recess Mood (magnesium L-threonate and adaptogen canned sparkling waters and powders), Recess Zero Proof Craft Mocktails (functional mocktails inspired by familiar cocktails), and its original hemp and adaptogen infused sparkling waters. Recess is currently distributed in over 15,000 stores, including Target, HEB, Kroger, Sprouts, Trader Joes, and Whole Foods, and is available online via takearecess.com and Amazon. To learn more about Recess, follow them on Instagram, TikTok, X, and Facebook, or visit the brand’s website.

¹Source: Business Insider

²Source: Center for Disease Control

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