Moray brewer raises £600,000 to tap into overseas market

A Moray craft brewer has raised more than £600,000 to capitalise on international growth opportunities and turbocharge production.

Heather McDonald, chief executive of WooHa, has been blown away by investor interest. Picture: Gary Murison

WooHa Brewing Company will use the investment to expand its sales staff in overseas markets and launch new products, including a beer specifically for its growing Chinese audience.

The Kinloss beer maker also aims to boost in-house production from just 5,000 to 88,000 hectolitres per year by 2023.

WooHa has so far raised £612,700 from around 200 investors, achieving its crowdfunding target in under three weeks. The company recently appointed Scott McCallion, formerly of BrewDog, Red Bull and Carlsberg, as head of sales to drive international growth.

The Kinloss beer maker aims to boost production from just 5,000 to 88,000 hectolitres per year. Picture: Gary Murison

WooHa founder and chief executive Heather McDonald said: “We are blown away by the high level of interest from investors in this campaign and look forward to welcoming nearly 200 new investors to our clan.”

She added that WooHa "big aspirations, a strong growth plan focused on the export market and an exit strategy to maximise return on investment”.

The brewer was set up in 2015 and started exporting to the US in the same year. Its international portfolio now comprises countries across Europe and South-east Asia.