In Fort Lauderdale Florida, Vegan Fine Foods continues its impressive growth with an equity crowdfunding campaign to bring its gourmet grocery experience to every major US city by 2024. The brand has been previously backed by vegan entrepreneur Heather Mills, and now presents a new standard of sustainability and ethical accountability.
Founder and CEO Steven Smith – a former engineer at Procter & Gamble and PepsiCo – started Vegan Fine Brands in 2016 with the goal of creating the “all-vegan equivalent of Whole Foods Market.” Through company and franchisee-run locations the brand plans to bring its unique retail experience to customers across the United States.
The company prides itself on only supplying sustainably sourced, organic, fair labor products, as well as being owned and operated by people who represent all Americans, whether it be in regards to race, gender or sexuality. It has also doubled down on its commitment to sustainability through reduced packaging and minimal to no reliance on plastic.
The fundraising campaign has now officially launched through Wefunder, a leading equity crowdfunding platform in the US, where everyday people can find and invest in early-growth companies and startups. The campaign will be live through April 30, 2021. To learn more, visit the Wefunder page here.
In its first 15 months Vegan Fine Foods turned over $1.2 million, serving more than 35,000 customers. Interestingly, 75% of the customers did not identify as plant-based or vegan. That is seen as atypical for any other demographic and business, and is viewed as a vital indicator for future growth opportunities.
Discussing his varied clientele, CEO Steven Smith says, “Our customers are from varying walks of life, we have customers that are celebrated Miami-based musicians, athletes and performers and we get the business community and families from Broward and Dade Counties and beyond. Because 100% of the brands are plant-based, non-GMO, and void of unethically sourced ingredients, shoppers do not need to read the labels. We make it simple for our customers to find delicious, healthy, ethically sourced products, all under one roof.”
