By Creature Companion Correspondent
We have been talking for many years about the potential of the Indian Pet Industry; however, until today, we did not see any big deal investments in this category. But to our pleasant surprise, today, Heads Up for Tails has raised US$37 Million. There have been few investments in pet companies such as DogSpot, Captain Zack, Khanal Foods, even in HUFT, but none of this magnitude! To many in the industry it is like a bright sunshine showing love and positivity to other pet start-ups that would flourish over time.
Delighted to hear the news, Rana Atheya, Founder of Dogspotexpresses his happiness saying, “It’s a great news and is very good for the sector! I’m sure this will attract more investors to recognize the pet industry as a big opportunity and hopefully, more startups and companies will get funded in future.”
Pet retail brand Heads Up for Tails raised US$ 37 Million in the series A round of funding led by investors Verlinvest and Sequoia Capital India. The current investors W&C PetTechand Amitell Capitalalso participated.
“For me, it’s really an ode to the animals I have shared my life with. Hope we can make a deeper impact with this investment! I also hope it sheds light on the Indian pet industry, which is coming up with some very interesting start ups.” – says HUFT Founder, Rashi Sanon Narang, expressing her gratitude on such a huge achievement.
She further adds, “We aim to create products and educational material for all the needs of pets at every stage of their life. We will continue to become a permanent part of people’s lives as pet parenting partners by leveraging on our in-house expertise and experience of over 12 years of working with dogs and cats.”
HUFT, with 41 stores across Delhi/NCR, Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad, Pune, Mumbai, Lucknow, and Ludhiana, have their own product range and represent a few international brands as well. The first HUFT store was in Select City Walk Mall. Such an amazing journey it had! Commenting on the Indian Pet Speciality scenario, Rakesh Mohan – Executive Director, Scientific Remedies adds, “Pet Retail landscape in India has evolved to provide a plethora of products and solutions to the Indian pet parents, thereby greatly improving the pet ownership experience and enhancing the special bond people share with their pets.”
Ashish Anthony, Founder Just Dogs, says “Rashi Narang and the team at HUFT… Congratulations and BRAVO! Creating a business opportunity is not easy. You had an idea and believed in it, putting up a herculean effort to build the team and take the Idea forward. Getting people to believe in you and your Idea, share the Same Vision and Passion, and Invest in you is fantastic! It is also a proud moment for us as this now gets the Pet Industry into the limelight with all eyes on the Industry. We take inspiration from you and work harder. The Industry is soon going to get Bigger and Better.”
This is going to change the sentiment in this industry and give boost to start-ups. Of late, we have seen the entry of Supertails, founded by former Licious executives. In the last couple of years, we have witnessed new brands in the market founded by passionate pet parents in hyigene and pet care segment and fresh food segment, even packaged pet food.
Varun Sadana, former Licious executive and Founder of Supertails – a new age start-up, proudly states, “It’s definitely a win for the industry. The market growth of the category has been upwards of 20% in 2020 and any new investment into the sector will boost this growth even further. There’s a long way to go before we are able to make pet care in India comparable to the global markets and I’d like to congratulate the team at Heads Up For Tails. We’re all working to make pet parenting journey more enriching and every step counts.”
Bharat, Director Orange Pet Nutrition wholeheartedly congratulates HUFT, “I would like to firstly congratulate Rashi and entire HUFT team for bringing the pet industry in forefront and showing all entrepreneurs that there is huge amount of potential in our industry.”
There has been a major shift in pet parent’s mindset over time that allowed entrepreneurs to take risk of bringing in quality product with higher price tag. The look and feel of stores has undergone major changes; though we still have a long way to go!
Industry people are all praise and good will for this great achievement of HUFT, which would surely impact our Indian Pet Industry in a progressive and positive way. Let’s see what they have to say:
Rakesh Mohan – Executive Director, Scientific Remedies, says “HUFT has been an inspiring story of pet parents turning entrepreneurs to address the gaps in the pet care marketplace by providing an incredible standard of service and quality of products to pet parents, consistently across the country, just like they would like to receive for their pets and themselves. The $37 million investment received from HUFT is a testimony to not only their love and passion for pets that has driven everything they have done, but also an acknowledgement of power of the ever growing universe of Indian pet parents, who are no longer just a seeker of discounts or cheapest available products, but a guardian of their pet’s best interest, who believe in investing for the best quality of life for their pets.”
Mitu Paul, Brand Head – Dibaq Petcare India congratulates HUFT and wishes the best is yet to come, “With the pet industry growing at such a fast pace, thought leaders like HUFT bring in a lot of design strategy to the canvas. Dibaq petcare congratulates everyone on-board Heads Up For Tails team for this stupendous investment news and wishes for many such more in the industry. Best wishes!”
Vinod Sharma, Director of GNV Commodities, praises HUFT stating, “Organized capital infusion is a step in the right direction. It is also a testament to how good the HUFT team has been in executing their vision.”
Mohit Lalvani, Founder – Captain Zack, couldn’t express his joy enough in words, yet states, “I have always been a regular customer of HUFT, in fact, right from the time I got my pet Zack, which was 12 years back. HUFT has been an experience in itself and a trusted one stop shop for every pet parent.
It’s a great feeling to see funds flowing into the pet category, great validation for all upcoming brands. All in all the offerings for our pets will increase and the industry will leapfrog.”
Bhupendra Khanal, Founder Dogchee Chew, says “This is an industry & a niche that was waiting to be tapped and a huge round of congratulations to the HUFT team for leading the way. It is a momentous occasion for the entire pet industry and we are eagerly looking forward to the positive impact it will have for our furry friends and us.”
With this amazing news in hand, we can say that our Indian Pet Industry is on the right track to hit the buzzer! Such inspiring stories, as HUFT, highly motivate the upcoming industry leaders, which in turn assures pet parents are getting the best for their pets – something we all have always dreamt of, being a part of this pet industry.
