How to get your pet food into retail stores
Pet food is premium-driven and fiercely loyal. Buyers want feeding trials or nutritional adequacy statements, strong ingredient sourcing and evidence of repeat purchase.
What pet food buyers look for
- Nutritional adequacy and ingredient sourcing
- Repeat purchase evidence
- Price per pound by tier
- Ingredient quality and safety documentation
- Repeat purchase and subscription signals
Why pitches get turned down
- Missing nutritional documentation
- Big bags with slow turns
- Specialty-only story pitched to mass
Retailers to target for pet food
Each retailer weighs these differently. Your pitch should too.
How Vice CPG helps pet food brands
Free readiness audit
Send us your website and the retailer you want. Our team reviews your brand the way a buyer would and emails you a one-page scorecard of what's ready and what's missing.
We build your pitch
Our AI drafts and our retail team finishes a buyer-ready deck, sell sheet and pricing model for each retailer, built around that buyer's checklist.
We take you to the buyer
Pitch it yourself, hand it to your broker, or let our done-for-you team make the introduction, prep you and join you in the room.
Questions
What do retail buyers look for in pet food?
Pet Food buyers focus on nutritional adequacy and ingredient sourcing, repeat purchase evidence and price per pound by tier, on top of the basics every buyer checks: velocity, margin and supply reliability.
Why do pet food pitches get turned down?
Common reasons include missing nutritional documentation, big bags with slow turns, and specialty-only story pitched to mass.
Do I need a broker to sell pet food to retailers?
Not always. Brokers bring relationships and account management, usually for a commission on sales. Many brands pitch directly or combine a broker with tools like Vice CPG to prepare retailer-specific pitches, pricing and promo plans.
When should I pitch my pet food to a retailer?
Most retailers review each category on a set schedule, often once a year. Pitching ahead of that category review, with your data and paperwork ready, gives you the best chance. Ask the buyer or your broker for the review calendar.
Related categories
Guides for your next pitch
How to Pitch a Retail Buyer (and Win the Line Review)
How to pitch a retail buyer: when category and line reviews happen, what buyers want to see, how to structure a retail pitch deck, and how to follow up.
How to Make a Sell Sheet Retail Buyers Actually Read
What a sell sheet is, what to put on it, the layout buyers expect, and a real example. Plus a free sell sheet template for CPG brands.
Wholesale Pricing and Retail Margin: How to Price a CPG Product
How to set wholesale and retail prices for a CPG product: keystone pricing, margin vs markup, what retailers and distributors expect, and a worked price waterfall.