Former Hollyoaks actress Gemma Atkinson’s beauty brand Gem & Tonic has fallen short of its £500k fundraising goal.
The Crowdcube-hosted fundraiser closed today (29 July) with £122k raised from 719 investors. It takes the total raised by the company to £372k, including £250k from private angel investors before the crowd campaign launched.
Despite the £128k gap, the company remained “very much on track” for launch in September, according to Gem & Tonic managing director Leyla Cooper.
“Our finance director modelled a number of scenarios, and we are confident that with the money raised from Crowdcube, along with the £250k already raised beforehand, we have the resources in place to successfully launch and grow the business,” she said.
A webinar for investors in late July confirmed the business was targeting initial revenues of £360k following the official launch of the range in September to the end of year. It is forecasting annual sales of £2.2m for the full 2026 financial year.
In late 2024, Gem & Tonic sold £127k in pre-orders when it offered up its first three SKUs to market: a hair and scalp mist, body lotion and face cream.
Two new SKUs are due for launch within 12 months of September’s launch, with the first set to be a cleanser.
Gem & Tonic will make use of Atkinson’s two million-plus social media following to sell direct to consumers, including a 50,000-strong community of fans engaged with the brand’s product development.
Formulated with minerals – “specially selected gemstones” – the range is aimed at busy women looking to cut down the number of steps in their beauty routine, and will be sold in subscription bundles alongside individual orders.
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