.svg){kind=small}
Slate Milk
|
June 24, 2026
Slate Milk's Triple-Digit Growth with Rolling Funding
Matchaful built a loyal following around premium, sustainably sourced matcha, and leveraged Clearco’s flexible ecommerce funding and strategic guidance to strengthen its DTC business and unlock a new growth channel alongside its retail and wholesale operations.
“As a founder who has so many things going on, having Clearco for easy and uncomplicated access to funding has been the greatest gift”
– Hannah Habes,
Founder & Chief Matcha Officer, Matchaful
The Challenge
Scaling After Being Turned Down By Investors
In 2015, Matchaful was founded as a DTC business and wholesale distributor, and a few years later, shifted focus to a brick-and-mortar business model with its first NYC café. When founder Hannah Habes first launched her business, she pitched more than 100 investors in pursuit of growth capital and received a rejection from every one.
Rather than giving up, Hannah reinvested every dollar back into the business and continued building Matchaful through sheer determination. But when COVID disrupted foot traffic to Matchaful’s café locations, the company faced a new challenge: accelerating ecommerce growth despite having limited experience with digital advertising or DTC customer acquisition.
The Solution
Cash Advance For Ecommerce Marketing Expansion
As Matchaful shifted focus toward ecommerce, Hannah needed more than capital. She needed the strategic advice and guidance to go along with it.
Clearco stood out because it combined funding with a deep understanding of ecommerce businesses and performance metrics. Additionally, the Clearco team provided Hannah with recommendations on how, and where, to spend her marketing capital.
“Clearco didn’t just say ‘go and use it.’ They helped me find an agency and helped analyze Matchaful’s metrics,” says Hannah.
The Results
Growth and Improved ROAS
- 40% year-over-year growth
- Improved return on ad spend (ROAS)
Even though Matchaful’s café business has picked back up, its DTC side of the business has proven to be an equally strong presence, consistently growing 40% year-over-year. And after launching paid digital advertising, the company quickly achieved strong returns on ad spend, validating the investment in ecommerce growth.
“Clearco seamlessly supplements Matchaful’s long-term fundraising strategy,” says Hannah, who now manages a team of 40 people and has over 500 wholesale customers that either serve or carry their products.
