Lyre’s Spirit Co is focused on the US market and continuing its 30 per cent plus y-o-y growth

Leading non-alcoholic drinks brand Lyre’s Spirit Co is taking on the tough US market and has notched up 30 per cent plus year-on-year growth.

Lyres co founder Carl Hartmann

One of the world’s leading independent non-alcoholic drinks brand Lyre’s Spirit Co is aiming to take a larger slice of the US market this year as the company fires up its presence in the world’s biggest economy.

Co-founded by Sunshine Coast-based serial entrepreneur Carl Hartmann more than five years ago ago the company will ramp up its off-premises marketing in the US to complement the inroads it has already made on-premises in bars and restaurants as well as travel retail.

With a new US-based chief executive, Mr Hartmann said he expected Lyre’s next marketing campaign in North America to unlock significant growth for the premium non-alcoholic spirits brand.

Mr Hartmann said in the last 12 months the brand has secured key off-premises retailers in the US like Total Wine, Walmart, CVS, Binnys and Central Markets to go along with their more established on-premises presence.

“Even in places like Las Vegas, which is a market that’s infamous for heavy drinking, you’ll find us in just about every casino’s lobby bar, restaurants, by the pool – even in nightclubs.,” he said.

“US consumers are also extremely calorie conscious, so we’re also a very unique product as we can be mixed with alcohol to create low alcohol, low-calorie versions of cocktails that are still true to taste.

“So our momentum continues in the US with 30 per cent plus year-on-year growth, and we are really just getting started.”

Lyre's Spirit Co is making waves in the US.

Mr Hartmann refused to disclose the company’s annual revenue but said they were “incredibly focused” on sustainable growth and achieving profitability

He said in the US Lyre’s has “heavied up” the resourcing, manufacturing, and business architecture in the US and appointed Las Vegas-based David Gimpelson chief executive, taking over from Paul Gloster, who took the role in 2023.

Mr Gimpelson was previously the president of Calirosa Tequila, a brand he co-founded in partnership with singer Adam Levine in 2021 and was also the former executive vice-president of actor George Clooney’s Casamigos Tequila, prior to its sale to Diageo for $1bn in 2017.

Lyre’s, which takes its name from the lyrebird because the company set out to mimic a full range of “true-to-taste” non alcoholic spirits, was established in April 2019.

A University oif Queensland graduate Mr Hartmann, who previously co-founded successful logistics software business Temando and recruitment software company Compono, Lyre’s was a change in direction which still allowed him to apply what he has learned from his previous start ups.

“As a third time founder, for me it’s about knowing what your good at and doubling down on that, and when to get out of the way and hire people that have deeper expertise and their specialist domains or operating businesses at different levels of scale,” he said.

“I’d say I’m really strong at creating a shared vision and rallying a team around achieving that but equally being able to bring great talent into the business and empowering them to succeed.

“We believe we have a strong diagnostic and read on where our future addressable audience is, the trends that are shaping the category, and most importantly where our SOV (Share of Voice) is coming from in relation to our drink’s strategy.

“Conversely, we know the value that can be extracted from a high performing eCommerce platform, so we are excited to see the focus on that side of the business, play a stronger role in the three-year plan of the business.”

Lyres co founder Carl Hartmann

The company has a core team of 60 staff globally, with North America with the largest presence. It also has recruited Australian cricket captain Pat Cummins and global DJ David Guetta as Kindred Spirits to promote the brand.

Lyre's has more than 220 awards under its belt and is available in more than 60 countries.

Its premium range of range of non-alcoholic spirits – including gin, vermouth, triple sec, tequila, bourbon, whisky, rum, and even ready-to-drink negroni, margarita, and old fashioned – gained an early foothold in a competitive market during the Covid-19 pandemic.

This year Lyre’s will expand its range to include a new Margarita, Pink London Spritz and Mojito Ready to Drink 250ml.

Lyre’s last capital raising was in 2023 when it raised about $34.5m in the UK led by investors DSquared and Morgan Creek Consumer Fund, and its existing shareholders.

Mr Hartmann said the raise was focused on getting the business to break even and expanding its manufacturing base.

“We now manufacture products locally in Australia, US EU and UK – so we’re extremely well poised for a growth round now, given all the key infrastructure is in place, and we certainly have a lot of strategic interest in the business on the back of this and are certainly open to new investment,” he said.

“In 2024 we were ranked the No,1 top selling and top trending Non-Alcoholic Spirit Brand in the world (International Wine and Spirits Record) – so as a five-year-old brand, we couldn’t be happier.”

Mr Hartmann said according to the latest data the compound annual growth rate of the non-alcoholic drink sector was accelerating in most major western markets, especially the US.

“This is driven by the ongoing momentum towards health, wellness, and moderation. It’s increasingly becoming socially acceptable to either not be drinking or be drinking less,” he said.

“Given most of the large alcohol companies are seeing softening revenues from alcohol sales, I think you can naturally expect a lot of investment and M & A activity in the sector to help combat this.”

Originally published as Lyre’s Spirit Co is focused on the US market and continuing its 30 per cent plus y-o-y growth