Royal Canin is investing in the cat business, by establishing a specific Feline team to look at ways of maximising every opportunity for cat food sales in the specialist pet trade. 

The move comes as the company is more committed than ever to increasing the sales of cat food by the specialist sector – with 77% of cat food still being bought via the grocery channel*, Royal Canin says the opportunity to feed more cats is one to be seized.

The Royal Canin Feline team comprises Veda Wagstaff, Christopher Chew, and Rachel Wannell. 

Veda’s role encompasses Scotland and the North and calls on her expertise following on from many years’ involvement with the Cats Protection League. Christopher covers the Midlands, having joined Royal Canin with extensive sales and retail experience in the brewery industry in 2013 and then working with the company as retail business manager for the North East. Rachel, previously a vet business manager for Royal Canin, covers the South. 

The team will work closely with Royal Canin business managers across the country, to look at cat-centred activities and share best practice across the board. 

Retailers’ first point of contact will remain their business manager, while the feline team’s role is to manage, drive and develop feline business opportunities both internally and externally across all areas of the business. 

Their combined experience across vet, pro (breeder) and retail channels makes them uniquely equipped to look at cross-channel business opportunities, while communication, education, merchandising and consumer lifestyle events will all help drive cat owners towards the specialist pet trade.

“Cats are increasingly popular pets, and with better nutrition and veterinary advances their lifespans have increased,” says Gemma Duffield, Royal Canin retail marketing manager.

“Many owners have more than one cat, and they are happy to spend money on them. This means that cats are essential to the future of the specialist pet trade and we see a massive opportunity to ensure that more cats have better nutrition, and that our specialist partners are a part of this opportunity. 

"We’ve been steadily developing our support for the cat food sector, with four successful years of ‘Summer of the Cat’ activity under our belts. The Feline team is the next step forward in building the cat business for all our benefit.”

*Source: Mintel

Pictured, from left to right: Rachel Wannell, Chris Chew and Veda Wagstaff.