Marleybones, the premium dog food brand behind Pantry Fresh meals, has raised £2.5m in funding to accelerate growth.

The funding round was led by TAW Ventures, the investment firm founded by Jane Lauder, with follow-on support from existing backers JamJar Investments, Active Partners, and Animal Health Angels. 

Successfully fundraising in today’s climate is an achievement in itself, but what makes this announcement especially notable is the remarkable representation of women on both sides of the table. Marleybones is not only female-founded, but the round was also led by an all-female investor team – a statistical anomaly across the European Venture Capital industry. 

Founded in 2020, Marleybones was inspired by a frustration with the lack of balance between quality and convenience in existing dog food offerings. Thus, they created their own pantry fresh solution – meals that are slow-cooked, nutritionally complete, and packed in sustainable cartons. Alongside its core meals (Boss Beef, Chic Chicken, Lush Lamb, and Sassy Salmon), Marleybones also offers functional, vet developed supplements, an omega oil, and natural air-dried treats – all vet-approved, locally made in the UK, and tailored to modern dog families.

Jane Lauder, founder and managing director at TAW Ventures, commented: “Like the Marleybones team, TAW Ventures was inspired by my dog, Thaddeus, and driven by a shared commitment to advancing pet health, wellness, and longevity. Josephine and Mikala are redefining what dogs deserve at mealtime, and we’re thrilled to partner with them as they continue transforming dog dining across the UK.”

This latest investment comes on the back of over 200% growth since the company’s last funding round, as well as several other noteworthy Marleybones milestones, including: 

• Expanding their retail presence to Pets at Home, Co-op and Ocado.
• Expanding product offerings with key partners such as Waitrose and Whole Foods Market.
• Launching a line of functional vet-developed supplements.
• Piloting a veterinary channel to bring Marleybones closer to clinics and professionals.
• Achieving a Trustpilot rating of 4.8/5 and a growing subscriber community.

Additionally, they have achieved the following sustainability milestones: 

• Partnered with rePurpose Global to achieve plastic-neutral certification.
• Used locally sourced British ingredients for 100% of products produced in the UK.
• Packed all meals in fully recyclable Tetra Pak cartons (avoiding millions of single-use plastic pouches and trays).

Commenting on the company’s growth, Marleybones co-founder Josephine Bager said: “Dog parents shouldn’t have to choose between quality and convenience. With Pantry Fresh meals, we’ve proven it’s possible to achieve both. This funding allows us to reach even more pet parents and further define ‘fresh’ food for dogs.”

Co-founder Mikala Skov added: “We’ve built strong traction across D2C and retail, expanded into supplements, and proven category demand with triple-digit growth. With TAW Ventures and JamJar by our side, we’re ready to accelerate our journey to make Pantry Fresh a household standard.”

On the heels of this fundraising round, the Marleybones team will scale across creative, customer experience, and retail, while building brand awareness through influencers, PR, retail activations, and events. The team is looking forward to accelerating performance marketing and acquisition.