UK’s Different Dog fetches €11.6M to scale its dog food subscription service

UK-based Different Dog, a direct-to-consumer dog food brand, announced that it has secured £10M (approximately €11.6M) in funding from new and existing investors.

The company will use the funds to move to a new state-of-the-art facility in Telford, the ‘dog capital of the UK’, expanding its capacity to serve thousands more dogs with its hand-cooked, human-grade meals.

The company plans to invest in marketing to grow its customer base and hire top talent to accelerate growth.

The announcement comes after five consecutive years of revenue doubling year-on-year.

James Connelly, founder of Charlie Oscar Group, a major shareholder and Board Director for Different Dog, says, “Different Dog is leading the way in pet nutrition, offering a fresh high-quality alternative to traditional pet food. With the growing demand for higher quality, more nutritious options for pets, we’re excited to support the team as they scale their operations and bring their innovative approach to even more dog owners.”

Different Dog: Premium fresh dog food subscription service

The husband and wife duo Charlie & Alex Thurstan founded Different Dog in 2017 due to a frustration with the mass-produced, highly processed nature of pet food.

At that point, the duo wanted to prove that fresh, nutritious meals are the key to canine health and happiness. The couple started by cooking meals for their dog, Crumble.

Since then, the company has grown exponentially, now feeding over 18,000 dogs and employing over 100 people.

The company offers a personalised subscription service designed to make feeding fresh, nutritious meals easy for dog owners.

Customers start by providing details about their dog, including age, breed, activity level, and dietary needs.

Based on this, the company creates a tailored meal plan using fresh, hand-cooked, human-grade ingredients. 

The company plans to utilise the space as pet ownership is on the rise. UK households welcomed around 3.2 million new pets during the pandemic, increasing the total number of dogs to 13M.

Alex Thurstan, co-founder of Different Dog, says, “More and more owners are seeking healthier options for their dogs, and seeing clear benefits from feeding hand-cooked fresh food. We’re delighted that this investment will help us take things to the next level and change even more dogs’ lives.”