Catone Brands Inc

Catone Brands' AU9 delivers all the power of protein in a 3.4oz shot — no shake, powder, or bar — launching in the $542B convenience store market with 2,800+ doors ready.

Protein - "Reinvented for how people actually live"

The Opportunity

• Catone Brands is launching AU9 — Energy, Focus, and Unwind — a concentrated EAA shot platform delivering all nine essential amino acids in a proprietary 4.1g free-form system, in a 3.4 oz convenience-native shot

• Free-form EAAs require no digestion — rapid absorption vs. traditional whey protein, which is digestion-dependent and bulkier

• Protein demand is rising while the traditional whey supply chain is under pressure: dry whey production down 9.0% in 2024, and Central U.S. dry whey prices up 180% trough-to-peak

• Founder-led: CEO Christine Malaguti already operates inside the convenience channel she's selling into

• Backed by CSO Stuart Lowther — a proven entrepreneur and brand formulator with a track record of building nutrition brands to successful exits

Market Opportunity

• $5.6B functional protein drinks market across all outlets combined; $636M within the convenience channel specifically

• 71% of Americans are trying to consume more protein; 32% are actively looking for new protein products

• 68% of consumers already treat a beverage as a snack occasion

• Category tailwind: the global convenience food market is forecast to grow from $542.01B (2024) to $925.87B by 2033 (6.1% CAGR), with premium-nutrition, protein-forward grab-and-go formats expected to lead that growth

• Health/protein-specific shift: 61% of convenience shoppers actively seek items with health benefits, where "better-for-you" typically means lower fat and higher protein — interest in nutritious grab-and-go options has climbed from 59% to 66% over the past seven years

Innovation

All the Power of Protein.

• AU9 delivers all nine essential amino acids — the ones the body cannot produce — in a proprietary, ratioed 4.1g free-form EAA system built to support muscle protein synthesis

• No digestion required: rapid absorption and bioavailability vs. intact whey protein

• Three SKUs on one platform: Energy (100mg caffeine), Focus (Cognizin Citicoline), Unwind (Venetron + GABA, caffeine-free)

• University-led validation pathway underway: a planned human metabolic study with Dr. Nicholas Burd's research group at the University of Illinois (protocol and budget complete; NDA, contracting, and ethics approval still pending)

Go-to-Market Strategy

• Convenience-first rollout: 200–300 stores at launch, scaling to 1,500–2,500 doors within 6 months, 7,500 doors as the Year 1 operating anchor, and 10,000–12,000 doors by 18 months

• Leverages the founder's direct relationships across national, regional, super-regional, and multi-state convenience buyers

• Experienced convenience-channel broker and reviewed distributor economics already in place

• Milestones tracked across manufacturing, placement, velocity, reorders, expansion, margin, and science to build the next-round valuation case

Team

• Christine Malaguti — Founder & CEO. 20+ years in CPG and convenience retail; direct access to national, regional, super-regional, and multi-state convenience buyers; private-equity-backed operating experience through a company sale

• Stuart Lowther, BSc., MSc. — Chief Scientific Officer. 30 years in nutrition CPG; founded Life Science Nutritionals and built it to a $40M exit; two-time EY Entrepreneur of the Year nominee

• Robert Malaguti — CFO & Treasurer. Financial governance, treasury, and capitalization controls

Fundraise Details

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