Snoop Dogg Is a Philz Coffee Investor

Celebrities are definitely catching on to this whole third-wave coffee expansion: first, Tony Hawk invested in Blue Bottle, and now Philz Coffee has announced that Snoop Dogg was one of the investors in their recent $15 million fundraising round. The rapper and occasional reggae star is actually quite the prolific tech investor, as it turns out: he's also put money into Reddit and Robinhood, a stock-trading app. A rep for his investment partner, Cashmere Agency, told Marketwatch that Snoop is bullish on Philz because of his "special affinity for organic ingredients...he loved the Philz business, but also loved the way they respect the coffee beans." (Presumably, the caffeine comes in handy with balancing out his other affinity for organic ingredients.)

Philz, which boasts 18 Bay Area shops, a single L.A. location, and a forthcoming HQ and training center in the Dogpatch, is planning to use the new round of funds, much of which came from VC firms, to expand its reach nationwide. The chain hasn't officially announced where it plans to touch down outside of California, but the rumor mill is pointing towards D.C. The chain's big-name fans also include Mark Zuckerberg, who's made Philz the house coffee on the Facebook campus, complete with its own on-site shop.