Tonsley sports drink brand runs out of steam
A South Australian company that attracted more than one million dollars in funding for its sports drink brand PREPD has appointed liquidators.
Preserve Health Pty Ltd appointed liquidators on Monday, bringing a seven-year journey to an end for its “sports hydration system” PREPD.
Anthony Phillips from Heard Phillips Lieberenz was appointed liquidator of the Tonsley Innovation Centre-based company after shareholders voted in favour of a voluntary windup.
The company was solvent at the time of liquidation and issued a statement noting the decision to wind the business up was “due to the increasingly difficult financial climate and the inability to secure necessary capital for continued operations”.
Founded in 2017, Preserve Health was the entity behind sports drink PREPD.
The drink was developed after 20 years of medical research between Flinders University and Yale University and the business was spun out of Flinders’ startup incubator.
PREPD raised $500,000 in seed funding in 2018, and in 2022 secured a further $713,000 via an equity crowdfunding campaign to push into the United States.
It also landed partnerships with Australian cyclist Amber Pate and triathlete Tim Reed during the brand’s life.
But “insurmountable challenges in raising the capital needed to sustain its growth” led to the appointment of liquidators.
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“As much as we believed in our mission and the positive impact of our products, the current economic environment for startups – especially in post-COVID times – has made it incredibly difficult to secure funding,” PREPD Hydration CEO Andrew Perry said in a statement.
“We explored all avenues, but the combination of rising interest rates, tightened investor budgets, and a crowded market has ultimately led us to this difficult decision.”
The company said its closure reflected “the broader struggle faced by many startups in today’s uncertain financial climate”, and that “barriers to raising the necessary capital have proven too great”.
“We are deeply grateful to our investors, ambassadors, partners, and customers for their support throughout our journey,” Perry said.
“We hope the innovative work we’ve done will continue to inspire future solutions in the hydration space.”
