EDGARD & COOPER®
EXITED BUSINESS
On 30th April 2024 The Craftory exited Edgard and Cooper to General Mills, a major deal for all parties involved. In 2023 Edgard and Cooper’s estimated retail sales were in excess of €100M. This represents over fivefold growth during the three and a half years they were part of the Craftory portfolio.
During this time Edgard and Cooper’s positive impact was also significant: Carbon emissions were reduced by 70% in 2022 alone, tens of millions of pieces of plastic packaging were kept out of landfill, and the Edgard and Cooper animal welfare foundation helped over 176k cats and dogs in need globally.
All of that is above and beyond their core mission to revolutionise nutritional quality in the pet care category by taking a zero tolerance approach to nutrient poor, hyper-processed ingredients.
Read The Craftory press release for more detail
“FEED THEM FEEL GOOD”.
EXIT SUMMARY
APRIL 2024
MAJOR ACQUISITION by General Mills
FIVEFOLD GROWTH in 3.5 YEARS
Carbon EMISSIONS REDUCED by over 70%
Tens of Millions plastic kept from landfill
Over 176K in need pets RESCUED
CAUSES
DELIVER GOOD HEALTH
PROSPER SUSTAINABLY
DEAL DATES
NOVEMBER 2020
22M USD (SERIES B)
January 2023
20M EUR (SERIES C)
JURGEN DEGRANDE, LOUIS CHALABI AND KOEN BOSTOEN,
TOP DOGS AT EDGARD & COOPER
DELIVERING GOOD HEALTH
Humans and pets may have different nutritional needs* but it's no secret pet food can be significantly more nutritious than your average high street takeout*. Edgard & Cooper are opening the nutrition gap even further by delivering superior health food for cats and dogs.
Edgard & Cooper’s headline? ‘Naturally tasty cat and dog food, that you, your pets and our planet can feel good about’. This means carefully balanced portions, rich in fresh meats & nutritious offals, packed with fruit ‘n veg, vits ‘n mins, and even prebiotics. All done while ditching highly processed meat meals and other nasties. Even their pet treats are healthy.
Importantly for pet parents Edgard & Cooper are an eco-conscious, sustainable business that says no to packaging nasties like single use plastic, and plan to have a net positive environmental paw print by 2025*. Their entire range of bags are made from plants (not plastic) using FSC certified paper or low intensity crops like potatoes. Till date they saved their customers from using the equivalent of 5.869.486 plastic bags! One step closer to a planet that can feel good!
*Sources
Human vs. pet nutrition
Pet food nutrition
Edgard & Cooper Zero Pawprint Plan
“EDGARD & COOPER HAVE ALWAYS HAD A ZERO TOLERANCE ATTITUDE TO HIGHLY PROCESSED PET FOOD.”
THE DEAL
THE CRAFTORY IS INVESTING $22M INTO EDGARD AND COOPER’S SERIES B. THE BUSINESS INTENDS TO USE FUNDS RAISED TO SUPPORT EXPANSION.
ELIO LEONI SCETI, CO-FOUNDER & CHIEF CRAFTER AT THE CRAFTORY, NOTED:
The increased humanization of pets by their owners goes far beyond pet apparel and dedicated instagram feeds - the concerns that drive preference and innovation for human nutrition apply to pets too. An obsession for quality and transparency typifies the Edgard & Cooper approach, and makes it possible for pet parents to express their love for animals directly through food they choose.
KOEN BOSTOEN, CO-FOUNDER OF EDGARD & COOPER SAID:
From the start we were looking for capital that is not solely interested in growth and profits, but equally believes a brand must do good for pets, people, and the planet. The Craftory’s mission to amplify purposeful brands really caught our attention: They are the rebel in the capital landscape, and we chose to partner with them because their values closely align with ours. We love their long term vision, and appreciate the “Crafter” expertise they bring.
JAMIE SWANGO, CRAFT PARTNER DIGITAL AMPLIFICATION & PLATFORMS AT THE CRAFTORY COMMENTED:
98% of pet parents agree “my pet deserves the best food I can provide”, but it’s hard to know what ‘best’ really means. Experts are divided over the efficacy of raw diets and the majority of kibble is developed the same way by the same manufacturers with different branding. Edgard & Cooper’s exacting standards and meticulously designed processes eliminate these concerns and make it easy for pet.
MORE EDGARD & COOPER
Koen Bostoen, Louis Chalabi & Jürgen Degrande co-founded Edgard & Cooper in 2014 out of love for their dogs - Edgard and Cooper - and have always had a zero tolerance attitude towards highly processed pet food.
After over two years of recipe development in partnership with nutritional experts Edgard & Cooper launched in its home country Belgium and quickly expanded into 13 additional European geographies. Rapid expansion has been driven by strong growth across all channels and geographies, helped by roll outs through 7000 points of sale across Europe.
It’s true Edgard & Cooper do things differently – They refuse to use meat that sits in a container after slaughter until it's full and ready for transport. These renderings can sit outside in the heat for hours - not good. Edgard & Cooper only use fresh meat and nutritious offals (never dehydrated) and it always stays within the chill chain. The meat is used within 48 hours and there are never chemical preservatives in the mix. The result is a pet food with the convenience of a kibble format plus the easy digestibility and nutritional availability of fresh meat.
Of course the results speak for themselves, this is maximum nutrition from natural ingredients. It’s as if your pet has their own personal nutritionist.
EVEN MORE EDGARD & COOPER
edgardandcooper.com
Our original press release