Oddball Lands $2M As It Enters Whole Foods

Jelly snack brand Oddball raised a $2 million seed round led by Springdale Ventures this week, as it expands its retail footprint and prepares for innovation.

The plant-based jelly brand will use the funding to support its launch into nearly 180 Whole Foods Stores in three regions (Northeast, Southern California, and Southwest).

Springdale Ventures, an early-stage investment firm founded by Genevieve Gilbreath and Dan Graham, has invested previously in insurgent food brands like Goodles, Feastables and FitJoy. Oddball is part of the firm’s Fund II, which includes Kloud Protein Popcorn, Bloxsnacks and The Absorption Company, among others.

Oddball is currently sold in about 500 locations and online. The zero-sugar, fruit jelly snack is available in four varieties: Grape, Pink Grapefruit, Double Berry and Mango. The snack comes in 2.75 oz. cups and are sold in retail for $3.59 per two-pack.

Launched at the beginning of the year, Oddball has been a passion project for founder and CEO Sophia Cheng since 2022. Cheng, who previously served as strategy director at Estée Lauder, sought to connect to her roots growing up in Singapore and Hong Kong where jelly snacks were a common childhood treat. Her goal was to create a better-for-you version of Jell-O using plant-based ingredient agar, instead of animal-derived gelatin.

The brand is expecting to double its retail footprint as it heads into 2026 with its Whole Foods partnership. Piggybacking off its success in Sprouts Farmers Market, Oddball is putting resources to its retail expansion.

“We’re not in the same era of 2019 to 2021,” Cheng said in a statement. “Meta ads aren’t as efficient as they once were, and shoppers are returning to stores. For our category, discovery happens in the aisle.”

In addition to bringing Oddball to new markets and retailers, the brand is planning innovation with its new funding.

Oddball is taking a familiar approach to reworking nostalgic childhood snacks for a modern, health-conscious consumers, similar to Goodpop and JonnyPops in the popsicle set and Flings, Glonuts and Legendary Foods taking on toaster pastries and donuts.

“Oddball is designed for families and kids who snack often, but want something fun, clean, and made from real fruit. As parents look for better-for-you options, we’re seeing that momentum reflected on shelves — and retailers like Whole Foods are catching on fast,” Cheng said.