For years, the loudest signal of a "winning" consumer brand has been the size of its funding round. A new report suggests buyers and investors have been watching the wrong number.
On August 11, 2026, :INCLUDED—the nation's largest collective of founders and CEOs of color across food, beverage, wellness and beauty—released its 2026 Annual Impact Report. The headline finding is a quiet rebuke to the raise-at-all-costs playbook: today's most culturally relevant brands often aren't raising the most capital. They're making the most of it.
The Data: Doing More With Less
Drawing on a dataset of 98 reporting :INCLUDED member CPG brands, the report paints a picture of disciplined, capital-efficient growth:
- 61% generate more annual revenue than the total capital they've raised.
- 24% have achieved revenue-to-capital ratios greater than 4:1.
- 73% have raised less than $250,000 in outside funding.
- The median reporting member generates 1.3x more revenue than capital raised.
In an industry where "growth" has too often meant burning venture dollars to buy shelf space and social reach, those numbers describe a different operating model entirely—one built on operational discipline and authentic consumer connection rather than a big balance sheet.
"For years, the conversation has centered on who raised the most capital. We think it's time to pay closer attention to who's building the most resilient business," said Jomaree Pinkard, founding member of :INCLUDED. "This report reinforces something we've believed from the beginning: performance deserves access. Our members consistently prove that operational discipline and authentic consumer connection can be just as powerful as capital. That's not just a win for our community. It's a signal for where sustainable entrepreneurship is headed."
A Six-Year Ecosystem, Not a One-Off Report
Founded in 2020 by founders for founders, :INCLUDED has grown into one of CPG's most connected ecosystems—linking founders, operators, investors, retailers and industry experts to build the infrastructure emerging brands need. Since 2020, the organization reports it has:
- Created more than $15 million in direct economic value for members
- Facilitated 3,000+ retailer and distributor introductions
- Generated 1,500+ editorial features across consumer and trade media
- Showcased 350+ emerging brands at premier industry trade events
- Built a community of 800+ founders and ecosystem leaders across food, beverage, wellness and beauty
Those retailer introductions matter because the report also names the pressure points founders feel most: raising capital, distribution, marketing, sales and manufacturing. Access—to shelves, to buyers, to peers who've solved the same problems—is the currency :INCLUDED trades in.
"The most valuable thing we co-create with our community isn't an event series or a whitepaper. It's founder-to-founder relationships rooted in relatability, respect and refreshing candor. :INCLUDED is the collaborative circle of trust we wish we'd had from day one," said Victoria Ho, founding member of :INCLUDED. "Individually, our members are driving category innovation by anticipating consumer demand long before it appears in syndicated data. Collectively, they transform lived experience into shared intelligence equity that informs pivotal decisions and builds a more resilient consumer products industry for all."
Why It Matters
For procurement directors, category buyers and foodservice executives scouting the next breakout brand, this report is a practical screening tool. A high revenue-to-capital ratio is a proxy for durability: a brand that sells more than it burns is less likely to stall out between rounds, disappear mid-contract, or chase unsustainable promotions to prop up velocity. When 61% of a supplier pool out-earns what it has raised, that's a pipeline built to actually fulfill orders.
It also reframes how buyers and investors should read a founder's cap table. A modest raise—73% of these brands are under $250,000—isn't a red flag; it can be a sign of a lean, resourceful operator who understands unit economics. For retailers building more diverse and differentiated assortments, :INCLUDED functions as a vetted, curated funnel of exactly those brands.
The takeaway for operators: audit your emerging-brand pipeline on efficiency and staying power, not headline hype—and lean on curated ecosystems like this one to source founders who anticipate consumer demand before it shows up in syndicated data.
What's Next for :INCLUDED
As it enters its next phase, the 501(c)(6) nonprofit says it plans to deepen industry benchmarking, expand access to retail and capital opportunities, strengthen ecosystem partnerships, and keep producing insights that help the broader industry understand where innovation is emerging.
The signal is clear: the next wave of CPG isn't waiting for the funding spotlight to prove it belongs on the shelf.
Are you evaluating emerging CPG brands on capital efficiency yet—or still watching the raise numbers? For more on the intelligence tools and challenger brands reshaping retail, see our coverage of Eileen's retail intelligence play and how MEDASE Cocktails landed in every SoCal Erewhon. Weigh in with a comment below.
Written by Michael Politz, Author of Guide to Restaurant Success: The Proven Process for Starting Any Restaurant Business From Scratch to Success (ISBN: 978-1-119-66896-1), Founder of Food & Beverage Magazine, the leading online magazine and resource in the industry. Designer of the Bluetooth logo and recognized in Entrepreneur Magazine’s “Top 40 Under 40” for founding American Wholesale Floral. Politz is also the founder of the Proof Awards and the CPG Awards and a partner in numerous consumer brands across the food and beverage sector.
