Imagine making money watching other people drink cocktails. Heck, while you drink cocktails. If this sounds good, start raking in the Benjamins imbibing (and investing) with Death & Company, one of the most influential bar to emerge out of the craft cocktail revival.
Over the past 12 years, Death & Co made a name for its talent behind the bar and penchant for revolutionizing the art of drink-making — the cocktail list is huge and organized elaborately by mood. Stewarded by Ravi DeRossi, David Kaplan, and Alex Day, Death & Co. proved from its successful Denver expansion and continued New York City eminence that it is anything but a decrepit company and more like the living, thriving dead.
The Death & Co. founders are therefore inviting patrons to invest in the brand (and bartenders) they love with the help of equity crowdfunding platform SeedInvest. The cocktail institution is the first-ever hospitality brand on the SeedInvest roster, but if we know anything about Death & Co., it’s that the team consists of trendsetters and it won’t be long until your neighborhood haunt jumps on the equity crowdfunding bandwagon. It may not be via SeedInvest, though, since the company has a track record of only accepting 1 percent of companies. (For scale, Harvard has a higher acceptance rate.)
Any way you spin it, investing in your favorite cocktail lounge sounds like a dream — but what exactly is equity crowdfunding?
This innovation follows the game-changing JOBS Act legislation that allowed small businesses to start selling equity to the masses via crowdfunding in 2016. Big freaking news seeing as, in the last 80 years, private companies could only raise capital from accredited investors (you know, the wealthiest 2 percent of Americans).
Founded in 2012, SeedInvest has helped over 220 companies raise capital and built a rapidly growing network of over 231,516 investors. They became the first equity crowdfunding platform to open up to the other 98 percent of Americans who were previously restricted from investing in startups.
“Our story won’t be told by a large private equity firm. It will continue to be led by us with the help of anyone who believes in the future we’re looking to build,” says Kaplan.
“As a small company, growth is both exhilarating and nerve-racking. We’re thrilled to have found a partner in SeedInvest, who worked diligently to understand our business, has become passionate about supporting our vision, and has backed our path towards growth with a wealth of expertise and guidance. With them, we’re excited for the evolution of Death & Co. — to provide growth opportunities for our team and to build beautiful bars that spread our collective love for great hospitality, fine cocktails, and nourishing food,” Day adds.
And what would you really rather invest in: stocks, bond, or spirits?
