Case study: Burning Barn Rum all fired up on Seedrs

Funded in fifteen minutes!

Client: Burning Barn Rum

Platform: Seedrs

Campaign target: £185K

Final amount raised: £263,513

Overfunding %: 142%

Number of investors: 186

Pre-money valuation: £1.5M

Final equity transferred: 14.94%

Tax relief: EIS

Business Summary:

Burning Barn produces 3 uniquely flavoured rums using only whole, natural ingredients.

Bullet highlights:

• Listings in Selfridges, Tescos & Morrisons
• Award-winning craft rums using only whole, natural ingredients
• Planned launches with 2 more major UK supermarkets in 2023
• Established export sales via European partner based in Germany

Burning Barn Rum’s campaign launched on Seedrs at 95% of its target, going on to reach 100% just 15 mins later. Within 2 days: 110%, after 30 days: 142% from 186 investors.

Burning Barn Rum appeared on Channel 4’s Aldi’s Next Big Thing a few months before the campaign went live. In preparation for this Katherine set up a registration of interest page on their website to trap the details of potential investors who saw them on the TV. This got a high number of sign-ups, some of whom went on to invest big into the Seedrs campaign. Not only did this appearance help with lead investment, but it also gave the brand credibility and meant Katherine could use the Aldi logo in their own marketing.

We chatted with Katherine Jenner, CEO of Burning Barn Rum Ltd to hear her experience of crowdfunding.

What was the best bit/what went well?

“Seeing the money coming in and investors coming on board” Katherine said. In one module of the ISQ Crowdfunding Programme, we talk about “the dancing man effect”, where 1 lone man on a dancefloor attracts more people to join, and by the end, there’s a great crowd of dancers. Katherine said, “It was great to see the crowd effect that ISQ talks about in the programme, I really saw that once we got to 50/60 investors, it was exciting to see.”

What were the key challenges you encountered whilst crowdfunding?

Katherine said she didn’t anticipate just how colossal the task of preparing for and managing a crowdfunding campaign was going to be. She said “It’s so time-consuming and has taken approx 6 months of time, it was a huge part of my daily and weekly tasks. But once you understand how it works, it’s pretty straightforward, it’s a case of constantly doing stuff towards it and making progress.”

Do you think you could have or should have done anything differently?

“I should have watched that module on crowd psychology sooner, [the one with the dancing man] and got more investors onto the campaign beforehand.”  This would have helped make private live a little shorter and less stressful, but it all worked out in the end and once the smaller tickets started coming in, then they were rolling in.

Katherine said that overall she’s happy with what they’ve achieved from the campaign.

What parts of the programme did you really benefit from?

The ISQ Crowdfunding Programme is almost in 2 halves, there’s the stuff that’s the same for everyone, the video tutorials, cheat sheets and worksheets, examples, and then there’s the bespoke, 1-2-1 support service where we roll up our sleeves to support individual business requirements.

Katherine said she definitely benefited from “the 1-2-1 calls with Steph, the general advice and support, and being able to email whenever with questions was invaluable. [The ISQ programme] is so much more than just the tutorials and modules, the sheer number of resources is incredible and it’s all the bespoke stuff that’s important to get right”.

Katherine's Top Tip for prospective crowdfunders

1. Keeping going with it!
2. It’s quite easy to think at points “Oh the platform’s community hasn’t provided as much as I thought”, and be quite fatalistic about it, but until you’ve actually closed anything can happen. So keep positive, keep posting good updates, and keep up the traction.
3. Success is a combination of hitting your minimum target early and keeping up the momentum.
4. Understand that it’s not just the value of the lead investments but also the number of investors. It’s all about crowd mentality and creating FOMO.
5. Shift your mindset from asking for money to presenting an investment opportunity.

Positives about crowdfunding

Crowdfunding has been a real confidence boost in the business, a sort of confirmation process that they’re doing the right thing. It’s not an easy way to get money - but is rewarding.

There are so many positives around it, all the people that Katherine met throughout the process, for example, people that are well connected and that may have only invested a small amount have offered free help and mentoring support. She’s also met 2 potential investors who are keen to invest significantly in years to come, so it’s also a way of teeing up investors for subsequent rounds.

What is next for your team/growth?

Burning Barn Rum has already hired their first salesperson, and is investing in more equipment in order to be more efficient.

Watch this space, Burning Barn Rum is coming to a supermarket near you soon - and we can't wait to try it!

View Burning Barn Rum's campaign on Seedrs here.

Author: Steph Yeates, Operations Director, ISQ