Latest news with #Drools
Economic Times
3 days ago
- Business
- Economic Times
VCs smell a big opportunity as petcare expands beyond food
A surge in pet adoption since the Covid pandemic, coupled with the rapid expansion of petcare services and the rise of quick commerce, is prompting both risk-capital and strategic investors to seek opportunities in the petcare startup space. ADVERTISEMENT On Monday, Swiss multinational Nestlé SA announced a minority investment in Drools, turning the Bengaluru-based pet food brand into a unicorn, or a privately held firm valued at $1 billion or more. Supertails, a digital petcare platform backed by Fireside Ventures, is in talks to raise $24–25 million in a fresh round, people aware of the matter said. Heads Up For Tails, a petcare brand and retail chain backed by Peak XV Partners, is also in discussions for a new round of funding, sources a Gurgaon-based veterinary care startup, recently closed a $26-million funding round led by Bessemer Venture the last five years, petcare startups — which are broadly categorised as either product-driven offerings or services — have raised $198 million in funding across 20 deals, according to data provided by Venture Intelligence. ADVERTISEMENT Petcare startups have raised $198 million 20 deals over five years. 'Investors see this as a very healthy category because on the one side, there is growth and on the other side, it is a pure retention-based category with good margins,' said Vineet Khanna, cofounder of Supertails. ADVERTISEMENT Founded in 2021, Supertails has raised $30 million so far, including $15 million from RPSG Capital Ventures in February 2024. Prior to the Nestlé investment, Drools had raised $60 million from L Catterton in 2023. ADVERTISEMENT India's petcare market, currently valued at $3.5 billion, is expected to reach $7–7.5 billion by 2028, according to a report by Redseer Strategy Consultants. The number of pets in Indian households has grown from 26 million in 2019 to 32 million in 2024, the report noted.'Higher disposable incomes, delayed marriages, and lower fertility rates are contributing to increased demand for companionship (of pets),' Khanna said the industry is growing consistently with strong retention of consumers, 'especially as people spend more across categories.' ADVERTISEMENT Legacy FMCG players and consumer companies have also entered the fray. In August 2023, Godrej Consumer Products committed Rs 500 crore to the category through a joint effort with Godrej Agrovet. Earlier, Nestlé India acquired Purina Petcare India from its global parent for Rs 125.3 crore, and Emami picked up a 30% stake in petcare brand Cannis Lupus Services India. Currently, Mars, the maker of Pedigree and Royal Canin, remains the market leader in pet nutrition in larger players, startups like Heads Up For Tails, Supertails, Goofy Tails, and Just Dogs have built product-led offerings, while Vetic, Petmojo, The Pet Nest, and Happy Pettings are focused on services like vet care, grooming, and product purchases are increasingly made online, especially on platforms like Amazon, Flipkart, and quick commerce services like Blinkit and Zepto.'Ecommerce created the initial demand, but quick commerce is what's taking it to the next level,' said Renu Bisht, founder of brand consultancy Commercify360. 'Now, even in tier-II cities, pet owners can access a wide range of products without visiting niche offline stores.'Non-food categories such as grooming, supplements, toys, and accessories are now growing faster than core pet food, industry experts said.'If food is growing at 18–20% year-on-year, non-food segments like healthcare and accessories are clocking over 25% growth,' Khanna noted. 'Pet parents today are far more aware of their pets' needs.' Prayag Mohanty, principal at Fireside Ventures, said, 'The pandemic was a clear tailwind. People were at home and started looking for companionship. That growth has continued across the category.'
Time of India
3 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
VCs sniff opportunity as petcare expands beyond food
A surge in pet adoption since the Covid pandemic, coupled with the rapid expansion of petcare services and the rise of quick commerce, is prompting both risk-capital and strategic investors to seek opportunities in the petcare startup space. On Monday, Swiss multinational Nestlé SA announced a minority investment in Drools , turning the Bengaluru-based pet food brand into a unicorn, or a privately held firm valued at $1 billion or more. Supertails, a digital petcare platform backed by Fireside Ventures, is in talks to raise $24–25 million in a fresh round, people aware of the matter said. Play Video Pause Skip Backward Skip Forward Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration 0:00 Loaded : 0% 0:00 Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 1x Playback Rate Chapters Chapters Descriptions descriptions off , selected Captions captions settings , opens captions settings dialog captions off , selected Audio Track default , selected Picture-in-Picture Fullscreen This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Opacity Opaque Semi-Transparent Text Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Opacity Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Caption Area Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Opacity Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Drop shadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Heads Up For Tails, a petcare brand and retail chain backed by Peak XV Partners, is also in discussions for a new round of funding, sources said. Vetic, a Gurgaon-based veterinary care startup, recently closed a $26-million funding round led by Bessemer Venture Partners. Live Events Over the last five years, petcare startups — which are broadly categorised as either product-driven offerings or services — have raised $198 million in funding across 20 deals, according to data provided by Venture Intelligence. Discover the stories of your interest Blockchain 5 Stories Cyber-safety 7 Stories Fintech 9 Stories E-comm 9 Stories ML 8 Stories Edtech 6 Stories ETtech Petcare startups have raised $198 million 20 deals over five years. 'Investors see this as a very healthy category because on the one side, there is growth and on the other side, it is a pure retention-based category with good margins,' said Vineet Khanna, cofounder of Supertails. Founded in 2021, Supertails has raised $30 million so far, including $15 million from RPSG Capital Ventures in February 2024. Prior to the Nestlé investment, Drools had raised $60 million from L Catterton in 2023. India's petcare market, currently valued at $3.5 billion, is expected to reach $7–7.5 billion by 2028, according to a report by Redseer Strategy Consultants. The number of pets in Indian households has grown from 26 million in 2019 to 32 million in 2024, the report noted. 'Higher disposable incomes, delayed marriages, and lower fertility rates are contributing to increased demand for companionship (of pets),' Khanna said. He said the industry is growing consistently with strong retention of consumers, 'especially as people spend more across categories.' Legacy FMCG players and consumer companies have also entered the fray. In August 2023, Godrej Consumer Products committed Rs 500 crore to the category through a joint effort with Godrej Agrovet. Earlier, Nestlé India acquired Purina Petcare India from its global parent for Rs 125.3 crore, and Emami picked up a 30% stake in petcare brand Cannis Lupus Services India . Currently, Mars, the maker of Pedigree and Royal Canin, remains the market leader in pet nutrition in India. Alongside larger players, startups like Heads Up For Tails, Supertails, Goofy Tails, and Just Dogs have built product-led offerings, while Vetic, Petmojo, The Pet Nest, and Happy Pettings are focused on services like vet care, grooming, and training. Pet product purchases are increasingly made online, especially on platforms like Amazon, Flipkart, and quick commerce services like Blinkit and Zepto. 'Ecommerce created the initial demand, but quick commerce is what's taking it to the next level,' said Renu Bisht, founder of brand consultancy Commercify360. 'Now, even in tier-II cities, pet owners can access a wide range of products without visiting niche offline stores.' Non-food categories such as grooming, supplements, toys, and accessories are now growing faster than core pet food, industry experts said. 'If food is growing at 18–20% year-on-year, non-food segments like healthcare and accessories are clocking over 25% growth,' Khanna noted. 'Pet parents today are far more aware of their pets' needs.' Prayag Mohanty, principal at Fireside Ventures, said, 'The pandemic was a clear tailwind. People were at home and started looking for companionship. That growth has continued across the category.'
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Nestlé takes minority stake in India's Drools Pet Food Private
Nestlé has taken a minority stake in India's Drools Pet Food Private, the Swiss food giant announced on Monday (26 May). Financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed, but Nestlé said in a statement that Drools will remain "strategically as well as operationally" independent. Drools describes itself as India's "first home-grown pet-food brand" as it acknowledged the Nestlé investment on LinkedIn. "This step forward builds on the momentum we've gained since partnering with L Catterton in 2023," Drools added. In 2023, the US-headquartered private-equity firm L Catterton acquired a minority stake in Drools in a deal worth around $60m. "Since our founding in 2010, we've grown into a key player in India's pet-food sector, with a presence in over 40,000 retail outlets and exports to 22 countries," Drools said. "Backed by science-based nutrition, strong retail and e-commerce reach, and robust manufacturing capabilities, we remain deeply committed to delivering quality pet nutrition with love and care," the company added. Drools manufactures dog and cat food, selling the products under its namesake brand, as well as those of Pure Pet and Kitty Yum. The pet food is available at retailers across India, as well as e-commerce channels through Amazon and Bengaluru-headquartered Flipkart. Elsewhere, Nestlé expanded its pet-food production in Hungary in 2023. It opened two new production units at its Purina factory, increasing output by 66%. Nestlé stuck with its full-year outlook in April despite inferring that consumers are stretched and have yet to feel the impact of the group's most recent price rises. Its petcare annual sales were relatively flat in 2024, coming in at SFr18.88bn ($22.8bn) from SFr18.86bn a year earlier. Group sales amounted to SFr91.35bn, down from SFr93bn a year earlier. In terms of the company's overall results, CEO Laurent Freixe refrained from pinpointing an actual organic growth target for the new fiscal year, sticking to language for an improvement over Nestlé's 2.2% pace in 2024. He also said the Swiss giant was aiming for its underlying trading operating profit margin (UTOP) to be 'at or above' 16% as the company plans to 'invest for growth'. "Nestlé takes minority stake in India's Drools Pet Food Private" was originally created and published by Just Food, a GlobalData owned brand. The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Time of India
5 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
Drools turns unicorn after Nestle's bet
MUMBAI: Swiss consumer goods giant Nestle has picked up a minority stake in the Indian pet food startup Drools. The Bengaluru-based company did not disclose the specifics of the deal but said it was valued at $1 billion post-investment, joining the ranks of unicorn startups. "This is a financial investment by the company, and Drools will remain strategically as well as operationally independent," Nestle said in a statement on Monday, without elaborating further. Nestle's investment in Drools comes at a time when the broader pet food and pet care space in India is seeing a surge in growth, led by an expanding crop of millennial and Gen Z pet parents who do not mind paying more to provide quality nutrition and care for their pets. Nestle has a large pet care business (including pet food) operating under the master brand Purina, which made up about 20.7% of the company's total sales in 2024. In India, companies like Godrej Consumer Care have also forayed into the pet care market of late. Backed by L Catterton, Drools competes with a mix of global and local pet food brands in India, including Mars PetCare and Heads Up For Tails. Drools last raised $60 million from L Catterton in June 2023. Drools is the fourth unicorn of the year after Netradyne, Porter, and JSW One Platforms. Stay informed with the latest business news, updates on bank holidays and public holidays . AI Masterclass for Students. Upskill Young Ones Today!– Join Now
&w=3840&q=100)
Business Standard
5 days ago
- Business
- Business Standard
Nestle SA makes first India investment, acquires minority stake in Drools
Global fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) major Nestlé SA on Monday announced that it has acquired a minority stake in Indian pet food brand Drools. Nestlé SA is the parent of Nestlé India, which makes products such as KitKat chocolates and Nescafé instant coffee. The value of the deal was not disclosed. This marks Nestlé SA's first-ever investment in an Indian brand. The announcement comes after Drools raised $60 million in June 2023 from L Catterton, the private equity firm backed by luxury conglomerate LVMH. The Indian pet food market, currently valued at ₹5,000 crore, is expected to witness double-digit growth. 'This milestone not only reaffirms Drools' leadership in India's fast-growing pet care sector but also marks one of the strongest institutional validations of an Indian consumer brand in this space,' Drools said in a press release. Founded in 2010, Drools distributes its products across over 40,000 retail outlets and exports to 22 countries. It operates six manufacturing units and has a warehousing footprint of 1.6 million sq. ft. 'This is a testament to the love and trust of millions of pet parents and to our unwavering commitment to quality,' said Fahim Sultan, founder of Drools Pet Food. 'Backed by a strong focus on science-based nutrition, Drools continues to drive innovation and build meaningful engagement with the evolving demographic of Indian pet parents, positioning itself at the forefront of the country's pet care industry,' he added, noting that the company has recently attained unicorn status. The development comes at a time when Nestlé India has identified pet care as a key growth area. It already operates in this space through its Purina Petcare division. 'Drools has achieved significant growth since we invested in the company, through high-quality in-market agility and execution, and a range of operational initiatives we have been working on with its management team to create value,' said Anjana Sasidharan, Partner and Head of India at L Catterton.
