94. Smith & Sinclair

Founders: Melanie Goldsmith and Emile Bernard
Founded: January 2014 (Launched October 2014)
Website: www.smithandsinclair.co.uk

Startups 100 2015-featured Smith & Sinclair originally created its unique range of cocktail pastilles as a social ‘ice-breaker’, to encourage attendees at an adult dating event to lose their inhibitions. After selling 20,000 pastilles four days after the website launch, Melanie Goldsmith and Emile Bernard realised they were onto something – by the end of the year, they’d sold 200,000.

Smith & Sinclair’s range of alcoholic cocktail pastilles includes mixed berry daiquiri, gin and tonic and whisky sour; all made from real fruit juice and dairy and gluten-free. Its consultancy arm also offers a bespoke confectionary service, creating tailored products that match brands, as well as event colours or themes. Now into its second year, Smith & Sinclair – which was nominated for Lean Start-up of the Year at the 2015 Startups Awards – claims to have doubled sales month-on-month and is aiming to increase revenue growth by 123% this year. The brand is stocked in more than 75 retail outlets across the UK including Harvey Nichols, Whole Foods and The Conran Shop and has worked with over 100 international brands such as Google, Ted Baker, and Beluga Vodka.

It’s going to be an exciting next 12 months for Smith & Sinclair too, with four contracts signed with FTSE 100 clients, plans for global expansion in the summer and the launch of a new product in time for Christmas…