Irish spirits distiller Stillgarden is facing voluntary liquidation, after failing to secure fresh capital to keep the business afloat.
The Dublin-based business said a “lengthy search for new investment has not succeeded” in a statement posted online today (5 November).
It would therefore cease to trade, ahead of the appointment of liquidators, “unless a new owner or investor comes forward”.
“We have done everything we could to keep Stillgarden going,” said Victoria Baird, co-founder and managing director. “We made the business leaner, built a brand that people love here and in the UK, and put everything into finding the right investor to take it to the next level. There is real demand for what we make.
“What a small independent distillery needs is capital, and we simply could not keep funding it ourselves.”
Stillgarden was founded by Baird, alongside Pat O’Brien and Damien Heary, and makes Irish amari and botanical liqueurs in Inchicore, west Dublin.
Its products are sold domestically in Ireland, as well as in the UK via Master of Malt.
The distiller said its sales grew to €400k in 2023 in the wake of post-pandemic expansion, but “rising input costs and a tightening market” had forced it into a restructure in 2024.
The business had “narrowed its product portfolio to return the operation to break-even”, whilst also seeking new investment, it added.
However, “despite months of work and conversations with a range of potential investors, no deal was secured, and the company could not afford to keep going on its own”.
Stillgarden previously raised funds via Ireland’s Employment Investment Incentive Scheme. It also raised €111k via Crowdcube in March 2025 from 146 investors.
“We would love to see Stillgarden carry on in the right hands,” said Baird. “If anyone in the industry sees the potential we see, I would ask them to get in touch now.
“I want to thank our team, who have been brilliant, and everyone who has supported us: our customers, the bars and shops that stock us, our suppliers, and the investors who backed us through crowdfunding and EIIS.”
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