Prohibition Liquor successfully closes 2025’s largest equity crowdfunding raise!

Prohibition Liquor successfully raised $2.6m from 1,128 investors, making it the largest equity crowdfunding raise in 2025. The Adelaide based distillery raised via OnMarket to scale its operations predominantly through venue expansion. The raise will fund the build of the Seppeltsfield and Penny’s Hill venues as well as renovations to their current Flagship on Gilbert Street.

One of the key motivations to raising through an equity crowdfunding raise was to bring in loyal followers to give them an opportunity to be truly part of the journey, as well as welcome more brand advocates that find Prohibition Liquor through the raise.

These key goals were met, as Prohibition Liquor has already seen an increase in customer engagement, and brand ambassadorship.

Prohibition Liquor and OnMarket’s relationship:

“Your team, at OnMarket, were incredibly supportive in helping us through this because it was very foreign to us, this is another whole world that you really have to immerse in. We really had a lot of support from the OnMarket team.”

– Adam Carpenter, Co-Founder CEO of Prohibition Liquor

Why did you choose OnMarket?

“You understood our business and our industry better than most, also OnMarket has produced some amazing results in the past with Australian craft spirits brands, so I felt confident that the runs were on the board but also you just sort of innately understood the industry too. I have been really glad right from the moment we hit go to the end of the campaign, and even after that that we went with the OnMarket team. Everyone has been working 110%.”

– Adam Carpenter, Co-Founder CEO of Prohibition Liquor

Why was the campaign so successful?

There are a number of factors that contributed to the success of the Prohibition Liquor campaign. Firstly, they meet a lot of, what we call here at OnMarket, the Goldilocks conditions. They have a loyal following, are growing considerably, have a strong point of difference, a compelling story for future growth, a simple and easy to understand business model and have reached a point of scale that is attractive to investors; revenue over $1m.

However, this alone was not why Prohibition did remarkably well. It was because they ran an extremely well executed campaign. They partnered with OnMarket, an intermediary that has deep alcohol sector expertise and has a team that is committed to the success of their campaign.  The management team took learnings from other campaigns OnMarket has completed and engaged the right teams to get their story conveyed to prospective investors.

The Right Investment Platform

Choosing a partner who has demonstrated the expertise and experience to steer a successful campaign is super important. Engaging OnMarket gave Prohibition a competitive advantage as we are committed to support, accessibility and guidance to manage the process and bring the requisite attitude and ability to be an effective partner.

We also have a sector expert, Mark Hubbard who has first-hand experience in founding and running a business in the industry, who has stood in Prohibition’s shoes, this provided Prohibition with confidence and trust in attaining the best possible outcome.

If you are in the alcohol sector, and are considering doing an equity raise get in touch with Mark, at mark@onmarket.com.au.

Marketing & PR

Prohibition engaged the specialist equity crowdfunding marketing firm, Jigsaw Agency, to run a data-led digital advertising campaign and produce a best-in-class investor video to tell the story of the brand.

Alongside digital marketing and video, the team engaged DL Comms, a leader in public relations for equity crowdfunding deals. This led to business and consumer coverage across mainstream media, including 7-news.

These combined efforts led to $15m in expressed interest, 50,000 lading page views, 4000 EOIs, and 2,000 offer document downloads.

Cornerstone investors

Prohibition had multiple larger investors come into the raise due to work done both before and during the expression of interest period. This created momentum in the campaign, and increased conversions from EOI to investors.

Investor rewards

Prohibition Liquor worked in collaboration with OnMarket, and Jigsaw Agency to understand what appealed to investors, and created tailored packages to attract and reward investors for investing in them.

Conclusion

Prohibition Liquor’s raise was the first of its kind for South Australia, making it the first alcohol company to raise using equity crowdfunding. It was extremely successful, which is a testament to the power of combining a compelling brand with a well executed strategy. By leveraging its loyal customer base, engaging expert marketing and PR firms, and working closely with OnMarket to craft an attractive investment offer, Prohibition not only raised significant capital but also expanded its community of passionate brand advocates.

As Prohibition Liquor now moves into its next phase of growth with new venues and a strengthened investor base, the success of this campaign highlights the potential for consumer centric brands to scale through equity crowdfunding.

If you are a privately owned business looking to accelerate your growth, please get in touch with Issac Newbold, at issac@onmarket.com.au.