Confidential · Prepared for Side Stage Ventures
Hyro × Side Stage Ventures

You back the top 1% of founders.
Here's what it looks like when you do.

A first look at the deal Side Stage is about to write — and where it goes from here.

See the deal → The growth story Built for your Tuesday partner meeting.
Scroll
Markus · Ben · Elli · Harrison

Funny how good the whole team looks in red.

Markus
Markus Kahlbetzer
Co-Founder · GP
Ben
Ben Grabiner
Co-Founder · GP
Elli
Elli
Partner
Harrison
Harrison
Investment Team

Turns out everyone looks better hydrated. Your daily dose of hero — we just made it official a little early.

The traction

25 months of compounding. No down month.

0
Active subscriptions
A$0M
ARR run-rate
0
% MoM, 25 months
0%
Subscription take rate
Apr 2024202420252026Today
Side Stage Portfolio

It already looks right next to your winners.

The breakout consumer bet, slotted into the family.

Leonardo.AiLeonardo.Ai
MagicBriefMagicBrief
NEWHyroHydration
AirtaskerAirtasker
Mr YumMr Yum
Go1Go1
BasisBasis
TrueStateTrueState
The headlines that follow

The story the market writes next.

Clipped from a future that's closer than it looks.

Financial ReviewStreet Talk
Venture Capital
Side Stage Ventures backs Australia's fastest-growing hydration brand
The Manly-born electrolyte company Hyro has closed a growth round led by Side Stage — the firm's biggest consumer bet to date.
afr.com · 28 Jul 2026Read →
TechCrunchConsumer
Startups
From a Manly kitchen to category contender: inside Hyro's US launch
With Side Stage leading, the Australian challenger takes on the multi-billion-dollar US electrolyte category.
techcrunch.com · Aug 2026Read →
BevNETFunctional Bev
Beverage
Hyro enters the US electrolyte wars with Side Stage capital
The Australian brand lands stateside with a 6.1× LTV:CAC model and an ambassador roster built for the feed.
bevnet.com · 2026Read →
SmartCompanyStartups
Founders
"The benchmark pitch": why Side Stage moved fast on Hyro
Partners describe a founder-quality bet — and a custom-built pitch that set a new bar for winning their cheque.
smartcompany.com.au · 2026Read →
Capital BriefExclusive
Exit
Global drinks giant acquires Hyro for US$1.2B — Side Stage's first unicorn exit
A fund-returning result for Side Stage Ventures, 33 months after the first institutional cheque.
capitalbrief.com · 2028Read →
ForbesEntrepreneurs
Cover Story
How an Aussie husband-and-wife team built a US$1.2B hydration brand in four years
Steve and Taylor Chapman turned a kitchen-bench idea into one of the decade's standout consumer exits.
forbes.com · 2028Read →
Side Stage · Internal Deal Memo

The terms are just the starting line.
Let's run it together.

Hyro Pty Ltd — Growth Round
Deal Memo · Prepared for IC
RECOMMEND: LEAD
RoundGrowth / pre-Series A
Round sizeA$3–5M
Side Stage chequeA$1–1.5M
Pre-moneyA$30M
Side Stage positionLead · first institutional cheque
LTV : CAC6.1×
Payback period~3 months
Run-rate~A$11M ARR, compounding
Use of fundsUS launch · creative engine · supply
ConvictionOutlier founder · big market
Run the maths yourself

This is the one that returns the fund.

Entry (today)
A$30M
Exit valuation
US$1.2B
Return on first cheque
40×
Comparable: Grüns → category giant for ~US$1.2B in 33 months. Entry held at A$30M pre.
Your thesis, our proof

Everything you look for. In one company.

You look for · Outlier Founders
↓ Hyro
Steve built Shine to $60M across 7,000 stores before Hyro. He's done it once — this is the second at-bat, with the playbook in hand.
You look for · Differentiated Product
↓ Hyro
Not another SKU. A brand people put on their water bottle — design and taste as the moat. Exactly the edge you back.
You look for · Big Markets
↓ Hyro
Electrolytes are a multi-billion-dollar global category compounding double digits. Monster outran the S&P for a decade in this lane.
You look for · 0→1 Specialists' Bet
↓ Hyro
US launch, owned supply, an AI-native CPG growth and ops engine. Built to compound for a decade, not a quarter.
First cheque · Outlier founder

Let's write the cheque before the plane.

Steve's on a plane to the US on 28 July. There's a clean window to lead this before then.

Send terms →
Built for Side Stage Ventures · Hyro · 2026
Created by Hyro as a bespoke pitch concept for Side Stage Ventures. Partner imagery is illustrative brand-campaign artwork made for this presentation. The headlines shown are illustrative of Hyro's vision and growth ambition — not real published articles — and are presented for pitch purposes only. Valuations, terms and exit figures are indicative.