Pet Industry News
The deals, launches, and strategic moves behind the brands and operators shaping the industry.
Escalade Buys ASL Solutions, Betting on Pet Hard Goods
Escalade, the public sporting goods company behind Goalrilla and STIGA, has acquired ASL Solutions, a founder-owned manufacturer of insulated dog and cat houses. The deal, terms undisclosed, hands Escalade a rotational molding capability it didn't have before and marks its first move into pet hard goods.
Sparkle Grooming Hits 600 Licenses. The Open-Units Number Is the Real Story
Sparkle Grooming Co. crossed 600 franchise licenses sold on May 28, marking fast development velocity in the Quick-Service Pet Care category. For operators sizing the model, the gap between licenses sold and units open, alongside the absence of a same-store sales number, is the more informative read.
JustFoodForDogs Hires the CEO Who Knows the Grocery Aisle
JustFoodForDogs named Michael Meyer Chief Executive Officer on May 29. The choice of a CEO whose last company was sold in human grocery aisles signals a likely mass and grocery channel push, with L Catterton's hold now approaching a decade.
Jane Lauder's TAW Ventures Buys Polkadog, Builds a Pet Wellness Portfolio
TAW Ventures, the pet health and wellness investment firm founded by Jane Lauder, has acquired Boston-based Polkadog from co-founders Rob Van Sickle and Deb Suchman. Terms were not disclosed. The deal is TAW's first announced acquisition and brings a founder-led, long-horizon ownership model to a premium pet category that has been shaped largely by private equity roll-ups.
Rover Survey Says Pets Reshape World Cup Viewing, and Pet Sitter Demand With It
A new Rover survey of Canadian pet parents finds 74% plan to watch summer soccer with their pets and 20% have booked a pet sitter specifically to attend an event. The signal under the lifestyle data: event-driven boarding and sitter demand is becoming a four-peak calendar that operators in vet care, pharmacy, and hospitality should be pre-positioning for.
Pet Wearables Are Projected to More Than Triple by 2033, and Vets Are the Tell
Research and Markets projects the global pet wearable market will grow from $3.37 billion in 2025 to $11.4 billion by 2033, a 16.8% CAGR. The number is only plausible if veterinary practices and pet insurers anchor the demand, not consumers. The category's next phase belongs to the device the vet reads, not the device the owner wears.
Pet Screening Just Became a Default Field in the U.S. Rental Stack
Yardi has integrated PetScreening's pet and assistance-animal profiles into its Renter Essentials platform, embedding pet underwriting in the lease-origination workflow used across multifamily housing. The collaboration standardizes pet acceptance at scale and unlocks the most valuable unbuilt dataset in the pet-housing economy.