Growel Group introduces pet food brand Carniwel, to invest Rs 100 crore over next 3 years, ET Retail

Growel Group, which has a presence in aquaculture feeds, aqua healthcare, and seafood processing industry since 1994, has forayed into the pet food sector with the launch of its new pet food brand, Carniwel. Over the next three years, the company plans to invest Rs 100 crore towards infrastructure, augmenting production capacity and brand building of Carniwel, J.S. Rama Krishna, business head of Growel Pet Nutrition told ETRetail.

This fiscal, the company forayed into the B2C space by launching 2 new pet treat brands – Fullr and DatGud.

“Post-COVID, the bond with pets has strengthened tremendously, leading to an evolution in pet parenting. This shift reflects an increased understanding of the emotional and mental benefits pets provide as companions, leading to more evolved needs for their care. Recognising this phenomenon, we have launched Carniwel, a new line of pet food,” he said.

Carniwel offers a range of products tailored to the specific needs of both small and large breed dogs. They are available in various pack sizes and are suitable for different life stages, from puppies and kittens to adult and senior pets.

Currently, the brand has launched 42 SKUs and plans to expand it to up to 98 SKUs by this fiscal year’s end.

“At present, we have introduced 3 variants for each – dogs and cats and plan to launch one more variant by October. Then, we will be launching one more variant for cats by December and adding 20 new SKUs in the vet range,” he elaborated.

The brand has already been in the testing phase for the last nine months and has an on-ground sales team comprising 50 members.

“We plan to expand the team and add 50 more members by this fiscal year’s end. Currently, we have a presence in 200 towns and 3,500 point-of-sales,” he explained.

“With Growel’s presence in over 4,000+ pet outlets, supported by a robust distribution network spanning over 200 cities and an omnichannel presence, we are ensuring widespread availability of our products,” he further added.

Growel Group boasts of a wide distribution network spanning 173 districts across 26 states in India and exports to 20 countries and has a turnover of above Rs 2,000 crore.

“We aim to be an omnichannel player that has a presence in metro and tier I cities along with penetrating deeper into tier II and beyond. Along with this, as we strive to make the pet food industry self-sufficient and domestically robust, we are set to commence exports in the coming months,” he said.

“In the next 2-3 years, the brand expects online space to contribute as much as 50 percent of its overall revenue,” he further added.

By 2027, the brand plans to have a presence across 10,000 outlets.

“In the next 5 years, we aim to build Carniwel a Rs 500 crore brand and by the end of this fiscal year, we will have 150 SKUs under all three brands put together,” he concluded.