Will.i.am, Alyssa Milano invest in Sanity Group
Berlin: Sanity Group, creator of the popular German CBD brand VAAY announced today a follow-on investment of $4.8M US from a host of US and European celebrity investors, including musician, entertainer, and Black Eyed Peas frontman Will.i.am, US actress Alyssa Milano, German soccer star Mario Goetze, and model Stefanie Giesinger and Bitburger Ventures.
This most recent funding round, which coincides with VAAY’s launch into the UK market, rounds total investment in Sanity Group to $29M US. It is the highest level of investment raised in Europe to date by any cannabis startup. It is also Will.i.am’s first venture into the cannabis market.
Will.i.am and Alyssa Milano join Justin Bieber’s manager Scooter Braun, whose investment fund TQ Ventures invested in Sanity Group alongside Berlin-based Cherry Ventures and other investors February 2020.
Founded in 2018 by German entrepreneurs, cannabis advocates, and co-CEOs Finn Hänsel and Fabian Friede, Sanity Group is fully licensed and currently operational with two business units, Vayamed, a medical cannabis company devoted to the development of new therapies and pharmaceuticals, and Sanity Care, a consumer goods business unit representing wellbeing brand VAAY and CBD-cosmetics brand “This Place.”
Sanity Group’s growing investment war chest will be used to drive forward strategic projects to give people better access to medical and medically-related cannabis products.
“I am a big fan of innovative health companies, especially after seeing the growing research that is done around the hemp plant. The Sanity Group team has found the right approach and has created high-quality products to help people”, says The Voice star Will.i.am, a big fan of the brand and now an investor in the German startup.
“With growing celebrity backing, endorsement, and support, Sanity Group is taking the European wellness market by storm. This additional investment in our business will help drive forward the expansion of our Wellbeing division and brands across Europe, says Finn Age Hänsel, co-CEO Sanity Group.
This week we are excited to launch our CBD lifestyle brand VAAY into the UK market, and just recently, we launched our second CBD brand, ‘This Place’ in Germany. “Support for our brand from celebrities such as Will.i.am is a sure-fire catalyst for growth. We are very excited to have investors who don’t just bring funding. They bring a passion for the brand that is infectious,” says Fabian Friede, co-CEO Sanity Group.
