# JuneShine Research Record

Accessed: 2026-06-19

Deck reviewed: `/Users/kevinweatherman/Downloads/D2C + Consumer/JuneShine Kombucha.pdf`

Rendered slide contact sheet: `/Users/kevinweatherman/Documents/deck-review/output/research/juneshine_contact_sheet.jpg`

## Current Status Overlay

| Signal | Current Read | Source Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Operating status | Active / multi-brand beverage platform | Official site is live with hard kombucha and spirits products; LinkedIn posts are current; careers page has open roles. |
| Headcount signal | Hiring, with manufacturing-transition caution | LinkedIn shows 51-200 employees and 123 visible employees; Tracxn and Top Workplaces suggest roughly 116-170 employees; Brewbound reported a March 2026 production outsourcing move affecting 30 employees. |
| Funding outcome | Successful post-deck raise | Public evidence supports at least $30M+ in quantified JuneShine funding: $6M in 2020, $24M Series B in 2021, plus a seven-figure InvestBev investment and undisclosed seed/Series A rounds. |
| Confidence | High for active status, medium-high for headcount trend | Active operations and hiring are well supported; exact headcount and total funding vary by database/source. |

## Company Snapshot

| Field | Data |
|---|---|
| Company | JuneShine Brands |
| Source file | JuneShine Kombucha.pdf |
| Profile slug | juneshine |
| Category | Better-for-you alcohol, hard kombucha, RTD cocktails, beverage platform |
| Deck stage | Series A deck dated September 2020 |
| Page count | 24 |
| Current website | https://juneshine.com/ |
| Headquarters | San Diego, California |
| Current portfolio | JuneShine, Flying Embers, Willie's Remedy+, plus Easy Rider referenced in trade coverage |

## Profile Research Synthesis

JuneShine is one of the stronger reference decks in the batch because the deck's core thesis was later validated by financing, category leadership, product expansion, and acquisition activity. The September 2020 deck was not a broad pitch-deck template. It was an operating plan for winning a niche beverage category during COVID disruption: shift from on-premise to off-premise and DTC, protect production, win chain retail, recruit a high-quality beverage sales team, and spend aggressively enough to create a gap between JuneShine and category peers.

The company subsequently announced a June 2021 Series A, a November 2021 $24M Series B, a January 2024 seven-figure InvestBev investment, and a March 2024 all-stock acquisition of Flying Embers' brand, trademarks, and distribution rights. By 2026, the company had become JuneShine Brands, with active hiring and a portfolio that includes JuneShine, Flying Embers, and Willie's Remedy+. The active-status read is strong.

The main caution is not shutdown risk. It is operating-model complexity. In March 2026, Brewbound reported JuneShine Brands would outsource production, shut down its own facility, and affect 30 employees. That means the status overlay should not simply say "headcount growing." The better read is "active and hiring, with manufacturing-transition caution." This nuance matters for founder feedback: strong revenue and category proof can still leave investors with capex, facility-utilization, COGS, and margin-transition questions.

## Funding And Investors

| Date | Round / Event | Amount | Investors / Notes |
|---|---:|---:|---|
| 2019-02-12 | Seed | Undisclosed | Litani Ventures, Amberstone Capital, Red Light Management, Chris Hollod, Trail Post Ventures, and others. |
| 2020 | Early funding | $6M | Referenced in PRNewswire and Brewbound as a 2020 round before expansion into 25 wholesale states. |
| 2021-06-08 | Series A | Undisclosed / mid-millions in press snippets | Celebrity-led round including Diplo, Whitney Cummings, Cody Ko, Ashlyn Harris, Ali Krieger, Ty Haney, Ashe, plus existing investors. |
| 2021-11-15 | Series B | $24M | Led by Amberstone and Litani Ventures, with Allen Gannett and existing investors. |
| 2024-01-31 | Growth / PE investment | Seven figures | InvestBev investment for marketing and portfolio expansion. |
| 2026-02-05 | Related brand Series A | $15M | Willie's Remedy+ raised from Left Lane Capital and Second Sight Ventures; JuneShine Brands provides sales, marketing, and distribution services. |

Funding sources conflict on totals. Tracxn lists $24M total funding over 5 rounds, while PRNewswire and Brewbound explicitly reference a $6M 2020 round plus the $24M Series B and later seven-figure InvestBev investment. The profile should use press-sourced amounts as event-level facts and mark total funding as "at least $30M+ quantified for JuneShine, plus undisclosed rounds."

## Team And Headcount

| Signal | Detail |
|---|---|
| Founders | Public narrative centers on Greg Serrao and Forrest Dein. Tracxn has a founder-list discrepancy that includes Joshua Makler; keep that as a database conflict rather than core profile fact. |
| Deck-era operating bench | Deck lists beverage and retail operators across sales, brewing, quality, finance, HR, chain sales, Whole Foods, RXBar, Boston Beer, Phusion, goPuff, and DTC. |
| Current headcount | LinkedIn shows 51-200 employees and 123 visible employees. Tracxn snippets show 116-121. Top Workplaces lists 170 US employees. |
| Hiring | Lever page lists open roles in regulatory affairs, contract manufacturing, and sales. LinkedIn jobs page shows current roles. |
| Caution | March 2026 Brewbound article says outsourcing production affected 30 employees. |

## Recent News

- 2021: Series A and $24M Series B validated the September 2020 deck's fundraising path.
- 2022: JuneShine expanded beyond hard kombucha into spirits-based canned cocktails.
- 2024: InvestBev made a seven-figure investment after sale-rumor context.
- 2024: JuneShine acquired Flying Embers in an all-stock brand/distribution-rights deal.
- 2025: San Diego Magazine interviewed Forrest Dein on JuneShine's origin and expansion into Easy Rider and Willie's Remedy.
- 2026: Willie's Remedy+ announced a $15M Series A, with JuneShine Brands providing sales, marketing, and distribution services.
- 2026: Brewbound reported the move to contract production and facility shutdown affecting 30 employees.
- 2026: Official site, LinkedIn, and Lever all show active operations and hiring.

## Podcasts And Founder Interviews

| Program | Year | Guests | Use |
|---|---:|---|---|
| The Bossticks / Dear Media | 2021 | Greg Serrao and Forrest Dein | Founder origin and brand-building narrative. |
| BeerNet Radio episode 76 | 2021 | Greg Serrao and Forrest Dein | Founder interview close to Series A/B period. |
| Brewbound Live 2021 | 2021 | Forrest Dein and Greg Serrao | Trade-audience founder interview. |
| San Diego Magazine Happy Half Hour | 2025 | Forrest Dein | Origin story plus Easy Rider and Willie's Remedy context. |
| BeerNet Radio episode 331 | 2026 | Greg Serrao and Forrest Dein | Current Willie's Remedy+ strategy and regulatory discussion. |

## Slide-Level Takeaways

Best comparable slides:

- Slide 3: strong COVID pivot and YTD traction narrative.
- Slide 5: milestone timeline with revenue, production, chain wins, and category rank.
- Slide 7: detailed 2020/2021 operating plan across product, people, brand, wholesale, retail, capex, capital, and financials.
- Slide 9 and 10: category-specific team and chain-sales credibility.
- Slide 11: brand demand-generation evidence with social, ambassador, PR, UGC, and field-marketing shift.
- Slide 15: chain sales data that supports category leadership.
- Slide 19: distributor revenue by wholesaler, useful as diligence appendix.
- Slide 20: sources and uses, useful for fundraise clarity.

Main feedback pattern:

JuneShine is a strong deck for teaching founders how to connect narrative to operating proof. It is also a strong deck for teaching restraint. Several slides are too dense, and some high-value claims require clearer sourcing and definitions. The founder feedback should be: "You have real evidence. Make it impossible to miss, source the claims cleanly, and show how each use of capital compounds the existing traction."

## Open Data Gaps

- Exact round amounts for the 2019 seed and 2021 Series A.
- Full cap table and whether Crunchbase/PitchBook records include the 2020 $6M round and the 2024 InvestBev financing consistently.
- Exact post-outsourcing 2026 headcount.
- Current revenue and contribution margin by brand.
- Contract-manufacturing cost impact after the facility shutdown.

## Source List

See `juneshine_sources.csv` for the source audit and reliability notes.