Ex-Manchester United captain Patrice Evra backs London water startup Dash

Former Manchester United captain Patrice Evra today quenched his thirst for investing by backing celebrity-favourite drinks business, Dash Water, as part of a deal that values the Soho-based firm at up to £30 million.

Dash Water, which uses wonky fruit and vegetables that have been rejected by supermarkets to infuse sparkling water with flavour but without sugar or additives, raised £2 million in its latest round of investment.

Backers include David Milner, who ran pet food business Lily’s Kitchen in the lead up to its £100 million sale to Nestle, David Abrahamovitch, founder of cult coffee business Grind & Co, and the entrepreneurs behind Sipsmith gin, as well as Evra.

Dash - which was founded by Jack Scott and Alex Wright in 2017 - also appointed Milner, currently running bakery giant St Pierre, as chairman. The drinks business saw sales more than double to nine million cans last year and this year expects to sell in excess of 20 million cans.

Fans of its sparkling water with raspberry, blackcurrant, peach, mango or lemon drinks include David and Victoria Beckham, Ellie Goulding, Robbie Williams and Jack Whitehall.

Evra said: “I always have a fridge stocked full of Dash, they make drinking healthy so easy. I’m very excited to be a part of its journey to reduce food waste, and create a healthier alternative to soft drinks.”

Scott and Wright, who both come from farming backgrounds, set up Dash after learning as much as 40% of all food grown is wasted. They intend to invest their new £2 million in growing the business in Australia, finding listings in more shops and restaurants, and further pushing their direct-to-consumer sales, where it offers popular subscription deals.

Dash drinks are currently found in 7000 bricks and mortar shops, including Sainsburys and Waitrose. Wright said the new investment would “give us a huge opportunity to achieve our goals of fighting the issue of food waste and giving a fresh perspective to unhealthy soft drinks on a global scale - we’re just getting started.”