Sauz, a brand known for developing a new generation of tomato sauce, announced that the company has closed a $12 million funding round led by CAVU Consumer Partners, a leading growth equity fund widely known for backing and building iconic consumer brands. The funding round also included investment from existing partners such as Coefficient Capital, Palm Tree Crew and Strand Equity.
Founders: Sauz was created by childhood friends Troy Bonde and Winston Alfieri, who had the idea that jarred tomato sauce, a product both prevalent in grocery store aisles and largely overlooked by most consumers, was ready for a much-needed upgrade. And Sauz combines high-quality ingredients with genuinely innovative flavors and bright, colorful packaging to bring a sense of adventure back to the tomato sauce aisle.
Flavors: Through flavors including Hot Honey Marinara, Summer Lemon Marinara, Cracked Pepper and Parmesan, Brown Butter Alfredo and Miso Garlic Marinara, the company has rapidly expanded its retail footprint, having launched at Target, Whole Foods, Kroger, Sprouts and more – with additional product and retail launches still in the wing for 2025.
How the funding will be used: Sauz aims to utilize the capital from this raise to catalyze growth in marketing, awareness, innovation, and distribution. Consumers can expect to see more retail openings, additional new flavor SKUs, and a larger online footprint by the end of 2025.
Momentum: Sauz has experienced rapid growth in a short period. Along with the capital raise, the company experienced a 148% increase in overall revenue and a 250% increase in online sales. And now available in nearly 7,000 retail doors nationwide with seven sauce varieties, Sauz continues to see best-in-class velocities in retail and is eager to build upon this momentum with CAVU’s support.
KEY QUOTES:
“Sauz brings new flavor, new tone, and new experiences to shoppers who are hungry for more from their pasta sauces, and we’re thrilled to have CAVU as a partner behind us as they not only believe in our potential, but are known for identifying and accelerating the next generation of iconic consumer brands. We have many exciting things planned for the future and, with CAVU’s support, we’re ready to scale this vision with even greater velocity.”
Troy Bonde, Co-Founder & CEO of Sauz
“At CAVU, we love backing brands that reimagine consumer categories and challenge the status quo. Today’s pasta sauce aisle is a sea of sameness — products that look and taste similar, but lack excitement, originality, and any sense of discovery. Sauz is bringing modern flavors and bold branding to a pantry staple that’s ripe for disruption. We’re thrilled to partner with Troy and Winston as they redefine how a new generation engages with the sauce aisle.”
Jared Jacobs, Partner at CAVU Consumer Partners, who has joined Sauz’s Board of Directors
“We started Sauz because we found ourselves hungry for something that simply didn’t exist: tomato sauce that made cooking easy, but that didn’t taste like the same blend of tomatoes and garlic we’d been eating for our entire lives. Cooking is an opportunity to discover new foods and new flavors, and that’s why we’re on a mission to bring unexpected ingredients – like miso, brown butter, hot honey and summer lemon – to a product that’s as convenient and widely available as tomato sauce.”
Winston Alfieri, Co-Founder and CMO at Sauz
