Nestle S A : Purina PetCare acquires natural pet food brand Lily's Kitchen
April 02, 2020 at 08:33 am EDT
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Nestle Purina PetCare has acquired natural pet food brand Lily's Kitchen, the UK's leading producer of premium wet and dry natural foods for dogs and cats.
Their product range perfectly complements Purina's existing brand portfolio.
Established 12 years ago in founder Henrietta Morrison's kitchen in London, Lily's Kitchen has become an internationally recognized GBP 85 million1 retail brand offering natural recipes for dogs and cats across 6,000 stores in 30 countries. The pioneering brand is particularly popular among younger pet owners and millennials.
Natural foods represents one of the fastest growing segments in the pet food category, reaching 7% of total pet food with double digit growth of 10%2. Lily's Kitchen recently expanded into the Middle East and Asia and already has a growing presence in France, Spain, Italy, Netherlands, Switzerland and Germany.
Bernard Meunier, CEO, Nestle Purina PetCare EMENA said: 'We very much respect the powerful brand, strong ethical values and impressive sales growth their experienced management team has achieved. Natural foods represents an exciting and rapidly expanding part of the pet care market, and this move reflects our desire to act on consumer trends and invest in high-growth categories. Lily's Kitchen is an excellent fit with our existing brand portfolio, and we look forward to supporting their continued growth with Purina's own world-leading pet care expertise, insight and global resources.'
Lily's Kitchen will continue to be run as a stand-alone business from its base in Fitzrovia, London.
Nestlé S.A. is the world's leading agri-food group. Net sales break down by category of products as follows:
- powdered and liquid beverages (26.7%): soluble coffees (Nescafé and Starbucks brands), coffee in capsules (Nespresso), chocolate drinks (Nesquik, Milo, etc.), tea drinks (Nestea), etc.;
- pet food (20.3%): brands such as Purina, Friskies, Felix, etc.;
- pharmaceutical, nutrition and well-being products (16.4%): nutritional supplements (Resource, Boost, Nutren, Optifast, Peptamen brands, etc.), infant and maternal nutrition products (NAN, illuma, Cerelac, Nido, Gerber), ketogenic beverages (BrainXpert), (Nesquick, Fitness, Cheerios, Lion, etc.), etc.;
- ready meals and seasoning products (12.5%): frozen and chilled dishes (Lean Cuisine, Hot Pockets and Stouffer's brands), soups (Maggi), etc.;
- dairy products and ice cream (11.8%): powdered milk, sweetened condensed milk, yoghurt and cream desserts, ice cream (Nido, Nesvita, Carnation, La Laitière, Coffee Mate, Nestlé Ice Cream, Dreyers, Häagen-Dazs, Extrême brands, etc.);
- chocolates, sweets and biscuits (8.7%): Kit Kat, Smarties, Cailler, Terrafertil, etc. brands;
- bottled waters (3.6%): Nestlé Pure Life, Vittel, Perrier, S. Pellegrino, etc. brands.
Net sales are distributed geographically as follows: Switzerland (1.2%), France (3.8%), the United Kingdom (3.8%), Germany (2.4%), Europe (12.8%), the United States and Canada (35%), China (5.9%), Asia and Oceania (21.4%) and Latin America (13.7%).