Ireland’s leading hoodie brand is delighted to announce €17m in new funding led by Castlegate Investments [‘CastleGate’], a growth focussed family office, headed up by Roy Barrett on behalf of serial entrepreneur, Tommy Kelly with additional funding from West.Ventures, a Palo Alto, CA investment and marketing firm.
This latest investment will allow Gym+Coffee to propel its growth into new markets like the UK and Germany (Europe’s largest athleisure market) and endorses the strength of the Gym+Coffee brand to further accelerate its momentum as one of Europe’s fastest growing athleisure brands.
Gym+Coffee was founded by Niall Horgan, Diarmuid McSweeney and Karl Swaine in 2017 with a mission to power a community to Make life Richer. Gym+Coffee hoodies have become an eye-catching feature amongst health and fitness enthusiasts in the UK and Ireland with many high-profile fans of the brand. Since 2019 Gym+Coffee has seen exciting growth with its retail footprint growing to 12 stores, headcount reaching over 200 and a 15-fold increase in annual sales over the same period. Growth to date has been supported by a €4m capital raise, focussed on internationalising the business. Notable shareholders include pop star Niall Horan, rugby legend Brian O’Driscoll and the Davy EIIS fund.
The brand has gained a vast and loyal customer base due to its authentic approach to community building, an engagement programme consisting of over 300 events, high quality products and most notably its support of women in sport. Following a brand ambassadorship program tapping leading athletes such as professional footballers Rachel Corsie and Jodie Taylor, and cricketers Danni Wyatt and Tammy Beaumont, the brand have further cemented their drive to spark conversation around the subject with the recent announcement that they are an official partner to Aston Villa Women’s Football Club, joining forces to change perceptions and inspire the next generation.
Niall Horgan, CEO of Gym+Coffee, said: “It’s been a rollercoaster for 5 years and we are really proud of what we’ve achieved so far. We have built a strong foundation, but we know we have loads to improve on to become a global player in this space. We have huge ambitions for Gym+Coffee. Our team and community have given us so much support to date and we want to make sure we match that support with a relentless drive to grow our business in a way that makes us and them proud.”
With this milestone investment, Gym+Coffee will be able to not only make strides in the UK market to develop relationships with sports organisations, athletes and health and wellness leaders, but also develop its sustainability initiatives. Already carbon neutral, the brand pledges to utilise the funding to develop their strategy further towards B Corp status.
Speaking about the deal Roy Barrett, of Castlegate Investments, said: “Gym+Coffee is already a fantastic Irish success story and an exciting brand with huge potential to be a global success story. Their product is best in class and the passion they have for their community is unique and genuine. We’ve been very impressed by the management team and their vision for the future, and we are delighted to help support them on the next stage of their journey.”
Niall Horgan added: “Castlegate is a dream partner for us, they really believe in our vision and we know they will bring a wealth of experience and knowledge to Gym+Coffee that will be instrumental in the coming years. We are delighted to officially have them part of the Gym+Coffee team and we are very excited to work together.”
Gym+Coffee was advised by Houlihan Lokey and Maples Group throughout this transaction.
