Startup
Sydney, NSW
Programs: Distill Ventures (Distill Ventures programme)
Every investor coverage indicates participated in a round Mr Black raised.
| Investor | Rounds | Invested |
|---|---|---|
| Diageo | Accelerator | - |
| Distill Ventures | Accelerator | - |
The transaction that ended Mr Black's run as a startup, per published coverage. It closes the funding history too, where it is the ladder's last rung.
| Bought by | Kind | Announced | Price | Sources |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Diageo | Acquisition | 29 Sep 2022 | $175m | glassandnote.com (Tue 4 Aug 2026), glassandnote.com (Sat 1 Aug 2026), thegrocer.co.uk, SmartCompany, foodanddrinkbusiness.com.au, drinkstrade.com.au, thespiritsbusiness.com, diageo.com (Thu 29 Sep 2022), diageo.com (Thu 29 Sep 2022) |
Companies Mr Black acquired or merged with, per published coverage. Buying a company is not investing in one: nothing here counts in the deals column.
| Name | Role | Sources |
|---|---|---|
| Chris Molyneux | Creative Director | glassandnote.com |
| Martin Hudak | Global Ambassador | drinkstrade.com.au, thespiritsbusiness.com |
| Philip Moore | Founder | glassandnote.com, foodanddrinkbusiness.com.au, drinkstrade.com.au, thespiritsbusiness.com, diageo.com (Thu 29 Sep 2022), diageo.com (Thu 29 Sep 2022) |
| Tom Baker | Global Ambassador · Founder | glassandnote.com, SmartCompany |
| Tom Petherick | Creative Director | glassandnote.com |
Stories naming Mr Black. Where several outlets covered the same round, they are bundled under whichever ran the fullest account.
Retrospective look at Diageo's 2024 buyout of Australian coffee liqueur maker Mr Black, covering the deal price, brewing process, US market performance, competitor responses, and Diageo's growth plans for the brand.
Spirits giant Diageo has bought the Sydney-founded coffee liqueur maker Mr Black; the piece examines the price, the cocktail trend behind it, rival acquisitions, and what comes next for the brand.
Founder David Vitale has fully bought back Starward Whisky, ending Diageo's eleven-year involvement via its Distill Ventures accelerator, which stopped taking new brands after sales declined in 2025.
Diageo is withdrawing from the Distill Ventures accelerator it backed since 2013, after a strategic review of its early-stage venture approach, leaving a smaller team to manage existing investments.
Also globalventuring.com
Drinks giant Diageo has bought Australian coffee liqueur maker Mr Black, in which it took a minority stake in 2015 via its Distill Ventures accelerator; no purchase price was disclosed.
Also diageo.com·thespiritsbusiness.com·drinkstrade.com.au·SmartCompany·foodanddrinkbusiness.com.au·thegrocer.co.uk·glassandnote.com·glassandnote.com
Ready-to-drink cocktail pouch maker Sophisticated Cocktail Co marks its first year, launching a negroni, with founder Vicki Lyon recalling a seed round backed by an LA venture capitalist and a Sydney investor.