The Ryl Company Closes $20 Million Series C to Accelerate Growth of Emerging “Modern Tea” Category

The Ryl Company, parent company of fast-growing iced tea brand, Ryl Tea, today announced the close of a Series C growth equity round of $20 million, led by Purchase Capital through its Ryl Growth Partners SPV. The investment will support the company’s next phase of growth, including continued retail and Direct Store Delivery (DSD) expansion, the build-out of its innovation pipeline, and team investments across operations, sales, and brand.

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The round comes as Ryl Tea has emerged as one of the fastest-growing brands in ready-to-drink tea, while the broader category enters what industry observers are beginning to call its “Modern Tea” moment; the next chapter of the better-for-you beverage movement that has already reshaped soda, energy, and hydration.

Over the past several years, a new generation of beverage brands have rewritten the rules of legacy beverage categories by meeting Gen-Z and Millennial consumers where their preferences have already moved: toward zero sugar, functional benefits, and culturally relevant brands. Retail data suggests that tea, one of America’s largest and most universally loved beverage categories, is having its turn now.

According to Circana, Ryl Tea grew 157%, while the rest of the more than $4.5 billion canned and bottled tea category declined 1.8% over the same period.¹ For the first time, the absolute dollar growth of emerging tea brands is outpacing the absolute dollar decline of the legacy category. The company believes the divergence—the same inflection signal that preceded the Modern Soda and Modern Energy breakouts — signals growing consumer demand for a more modern approach to tea, particularly among younger shoppers.

The shopper opportunity is significant. Ready-to-drink tea already enjoys roughly 81% household penetration², but the category’s shopper base has historically skewed Gen-X and Boomer. Ryl Tea over-indexes with female Gen-Z and Millennial consumers, bringing incremental shoppers into a category that has been largely under-served by modern brands.

“We have enormous respect for the brands that built this category over the last several decades –they’re the reason tea has become a staple in the majority of American households. Our mission is to help bring a new generation of consumers into the tea aisle and grow the overall category through products that align with how people want to drink today,” said Blodin Ukella, Founder and CEO of The Ryl Company. “We’re incredibly grateful to our team, our retail and distribution partners, our investors, and the consumers who’ve believed in what we’re building. This round gives us the opportunity to fuel that momentum.”

The funding follows a period of significant momentum for Ryl, which has spent the past 24 months establishing a national DSD footprint, placing the brand among a small group of emerging beverage companies with the route-to-market infrastructure to compete at scale. The company also recently announced a multi-year licensing partnership with The Hershey Company to launch the first zero-sugar Jolly Rancher-inspired iced tea products, pairing one of America’s most iconic flavor brands with Ryl’s modern, zero-sugar formulation.

“The Ryl leadership team has built a product that strongly resonates with consumers and is rapidly expanding,” said Nicholas J. Singer, Founder and Managing Partner of Purchase Capital. “Modern Tea is one of the most compelling categories in the beverage industry, and Ryl is exceptionally well positioned to lead it.”

“This round is fuel, not a finish line,” said Leigh Feuerstein, Co-Chairman of The Ryl Company. “The work our team has done to earn the trust of retailers, build out our DSD network, and partner with companies like The Hershey Company has positioned us well for the next phase of growth. We have a meaningful innovation pipeline coming in Q1 2027 that we’re excited to share when the time is right — and we’re approaching this next chapter with the same focus that got us here.”

About The Ryl Company

The Ryl Company is a modern beverage company headquartered in Morristown, New Jersey, and the maker of Ryl Tea — a zero-sugar, functional ready-to-drink iced tea built for today’s consumer. With a high-quality tea blend that delivers functional tea polyphenols and an excellent source of Vitamin C, fewer than 5 calories per can, and a growing national retail and DSD footprint, Ryl is helping define the emerging Modern Tea category. Learn more at drinkryl.com.

About Purchase Capital

Purchase Capital is an investment firm that provides patient capital for private and public companies that have significant potential for long-term value creation. The firm looks broadly across asset classes and industries, takes a concentrated approach toward deploying capital, and is flexible with regard to debt or equity. Purchase Capital serves as the family office to veteran investor and entrepreneur Nicholas J. Singer, and as a sponsor to leading institutional investors, endowments and foundations. For more information, please visit https://purchasecapital.com/.

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