Spotlight On: Nestlé Purina

Being the top dog—or cat—in the neighborhood comes with its own set of responsibilities. 

No one knows that better than the team at St. Louis-based Nestlé Purina, the leading pet food supplier in the nation and frankly, a manufacturer that is extremely serious about its category leadership role. The company has long championed the entire pet care category at supermarkets, stressing to retailers the importance of the segment in terms of not only sales and profits, but drawing the best shoppers into the store and down the aisle. 

“This is a category with a tremendous amount of potential and opportunity for retailers,” says Paul Cooke, the company’s vice president and director of trade and industry development. “Nestlé Purina is the biggest manufacturer in the category and, we think, a big part of the solution for any retailer involved in it.”

Purina certainly has the history, experience, brand recognition and financial clout to back up its position. The company, which is over 90 years old, registers more than $8.5 billion in annual sales. That entire total comes from dog and cat food and treat segments from such well-known brands as Purina One, Beneful, Beyond, Friskies, Fancy Feast and its iconic Dog Chow line. It is also a leader in the cat litter arena with the Tidy Cats line. Company officials say that Purina has about a 31 percent share of market in the combined pet food/snacks/litter segments in mass retail outlets. 

In fact, it is quite difficult to find a traditional supermarket chain across the country that does not use Purina products as the anchor for their overall pet food category, carrying dozens or even hundreds of the company’s more than 500 available SKUs across all three product segments.  

The team at Purina realizes that this is not the time to rest on their laurels. The pet section, not to mention the overall center store area, is under siege at the supermarket from several directions. First, retailers are looking for more space for the glamorous and growing fresh departments, and much of that room is coming at the expense of the center store. Less room for the overall center store section often translates into less room for the pet category.

Second, the competition amongst pet food manufacturers is noticeably increasing, and many rival brands and newcomers alike are going after the top dog in the category.

However, Purina appears confident that  it has the answers. Cooke has long been a leading expert, touting the benefits of the pet care category, espousing how pet products attract a large group of consumers more willing to spend incremental dollars on the well-being of their families, which includes their pets. Industry data backs him up, with information suggesting that consumers who own a pet spend about 30 percent more at the food store than shoppers who do not own a pet. 

“Retailers have to think of the pet category as they think about their perimeter sections,” Cooke notes. “It is a destination department that must meet the consumers’ needs for a lifetime—in this case the lifetime of their pets. So they need to offer convenience, variety and a solid value equation that makes the consumer comfortable shopping there.”

Purina’s passion for pets is brought to life through safety and innovation as the company strives to meet the needs of its consumers wherever they choose to shop. The company competes across all price tiers in both dog and cat foods. Some of these examples include the Dog Chow and Beneful brands in the premium tier and Purina ONE in the super premium tier. With cats, some of their brands offered include Friskies and Cat Chow in the premium segment with Fancy Feast and ONE in the super premium segment. In the Ultra category, Purina Beyond has made great strides in offering consumers the natural option they are looking for in both cat and dog food.

“We realize that great nutrition starts with understanding the nutrients, not just the ingredients,” says DeAnne Stepp, Purina’s managing director of category leadership. “We are not just following some consumer fad. We want the best nutrition for these pets. And that means giving consumers the best products across all the pricing tiers we offer.”

To that end, Stepp says that Purina employs more than 500 nutritionists, behaviorists and immunologists to ensure that the company remains on the cutting edge when it comes to offering the best products to consumers.

Of course, the company is also a leader in promoting its products. It is a leading supporter of pet shows across the country, including the Westminster Show in New York in February and the National Dog Show in Philadelphia on Thanksgiving Day. The company also advertises its products on television and executes robust digital media programs. 

Cooke adds that this philosophy is what makes Purina stand apart from its competition. “We are very much focused on health and wellness products,” he says. “We stand for pets. They are our passion. Safety is our promise and innovation is our pledge. Together this is what makes Purina a great company to work with.”  

Yet there is more to Purina these days that gives the company a jump over its competition. Cooke and Stepp stress how the workplace environment at the company has helped it stay ahead of the competition. The St. Louis headquarters is pet friendly and both say that there are animals all over the office, creating a unique and quite happy environment. “Glassdoor.com ranked us as the third best place to work in the country a few years ago,” says Stepp. “We are very proud of that.” 

Stepp adds that Purina donates about six million pounds of pet food a year and the company owns Petfinder, the website that serves to put people and pets together. “Our job is to help this entire category grow,” she says. 

Cooke is also confident that Purina will stay a leader in the pet care category. Along with having well-known brands, he says the company’s commitment to animal nutrition research and providing health and wellness products will keep it at the forefront of the industry. 

“It is about being a leader and a voice for the category,” he says. “Our plan is to continue to meet consumer needs and help pets live longer, healthier lives. We will continue to invest in our company with the goal of introducing products that satisfy our goal of providing consumers and their pets the best in the market.”