Elevate, London’s first functional smoothie bar, has raised £2 million in an oversubscribed round led by JamJar, the fund founded by the founders of Innocent Drinks, with Cassius, Active Partners, and Nick Jones, founder of Soho House.
Founded by Julia Baldet, Elevate opened at the Royal Exchange in the City of London in June 2025 and in the Foodhall at Selfridges London in April 2026. Both sites were profitable from their first month, and the business will close its first full year with over £1 million in sales.
Physical retail has long been the category investors avoid: capital-heavy, slow to scale, and often years from paying back a single site. Elevate was built to prove the opposite. Its first site, opened on a pre-seed round, was the proof of concept: small-footprint sites, a short menu designed for throughput and operational discipline keep fixed costs low and payback short. The round will fund the next sites on the same model.
Functional nutrition has moved from a niche into everyday behaviour. What people eat and drink is now part of how they manage energy, performance and how they feel, with the same intent they once reserved for fitness or skincare. Elevate’s numbers show the habit forming: since opening last year, its best-selling smoothie, The Glow, made with collagen and hyaluronic acid, has grossed close to half a million pounds on its own, and its most loyal customers spend in the thousands with the brand each year.
Elevate’s ambition is a modern wellness brand that people build into their routine, rather than a convenience-driven purchase. In its first year it has built a following well beyond its two sites, working with brands such as Nike x Skims, Adanola, ON Running, OUAI and Medicube, sitting where wellness meets beauty, fashion and lifestyle. Physical sites build the habit and the customer relationship; partnerships and products are how the brand reaches beyond them.
Julia Baldet, founder of Elevate, said: “Elevate started with a frustration of my own: I was working long hours in finance, trying to take my health seriously, and nothing on the go made that easy so I decided to build it myself. Wellness is now part of how people live and spend, and it deserves a brand with real standards. We’ve proved the model works, profitably, in two very different parts of the city. With the backing of the people behind some of the best brands in consumer and hospitality, this round is about building Elevate into the brand that defines the category, starting with London.”
Adam Balon, partner at JamJar, said: “When we started innocent, our mission was to make it easy for people to do themselves some good. That’s never been more relevant, and wellness on the go is now a huge opportunity. Elevate’s proposition is perfect: delicious smoothies that look great whilst meeting real nutritional and wellness needs. It’s clearly working; loyal customers love the brand & superb site economics. Most of all, we’re backing Julia. She’s focused, ambitious, creative and commercial, and we’re thrilled to support her as she builds Elevate into a category defining brand”
The funding will open new sites across London in 2027, the first early in the year, and build the team and brand behind them.
