Online wine store Naked Wines has raised $10 million (£6.4 million) from one of its original shareholders to invest in winemakers and improve its supply of products.
In a statement from the Norwich-based firm - interestingly released in California rather than Britain - the company said the third round funding came from wine selling group WIV Wein International AG.
The company said the money would help support growth in Australia and the US as it seeks to capitalise on a rise in turnover to more than $60 million last year.
The business model relies on a stream of income from wine lovers that sign up to a £40 monthly subscription and receive big discounts in return. There are about 150,000 of its 'Angels' at the moment after launching in 2008 - about a third of whom live in Australia and the US.
Founder and chief executive Rowan Gormley, who also launched Virgin Wines, said: 'We're in business to make rich people's wines affordable to normal people. By funding winemakers, so that they can focus on making great wine, rather than selling it, we do just that.'
'WIV's latest investment will really help us step up the quality of our wines in a way that our customers can taste,' he said.
The firm ships more than 10 million bottles of wine a year and has invested over $40 million in more than 130 winemakers in four continents. It made a $1.5 million profit last year which it distributed among staff for 'working their nuts off'.
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