Posted Tuesday 1st April 2025
Joelson, the leading London law firm, has successfully advised the founders of Citizens of Soil, the premium olive oil challenger brand, on its £1.8M investment by FIGR Ventures, a private family office and various angel investors.
Citizens of Soil was founded in 2020 by Michael and Sarah Vachon with the aim of changing the way olive oil is produced, valued, and consumed. They saw firsthand how small-scale farmers in Greece were going above and beyond to preserve their land through regenerative farming, yet they were paid the same as those using intensive, harmful methods—simply because olive oil is treated as a commodity.
Their mission is to bring transparency to the olive oil industry, connect people to the producers behind each bottle, and build a community that values quality over quantity.
The investment will help Citizens of Soil scale its direct-to-consumer offering, expand further into national grocery, and grow its team across digital, sales, and marketing. Most importantly, it will enable the company to support more farmers, ensuring they are paid fairly and equipped to continue regenerative farming practices that benefit both the land and consumers.
The Joelson team, led by Phil Hails-Smith (Partner) with support from Sylvia Lau (Associate), previously worked with Citizens of Soil on its Series Seed funding round in 2024.
Michael Vachon, Co-Founder of Citizens of Soil, commented:
“It was such a pleasure working with the team at Joelson on our recent fundraise. More than just being thorough and professional, they really understood what all parties were trying to achieve and worked hard to get the deal done. It’s so important to have partners you can trust to navigate the complexities of fundraising and we’d certainly work with Joelson again.”
Phil Hails-Smith, Partner at Joelson added:
“We are delighted to continue or relationship with Citizens of Soil. We’ve supported them since the very early days. It’s fantastic to be able to support another B Corp as they continue to take on and disrupt the category. We really enjoyed working with Michael, Sarah and the team on this deal and look forward to working with them in the future. Citizens of Soil combines some of our favourite values – challenger brands in the consumer space who are based on creating purpose and impact.”
This article is for reference purposes only. It does not constitute legal advice and should not be relied upon as such. Specific legal advice about your specific circumstances should always be sought separately before taking or deciding not to take any action.
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