Mars Petcare is expanding its portfolio of meals with the launch of its new Sheba Kitten range for the first time. Recognising the opportunity to future-proof the petcare category by recruiting owners into the brand from day one of cat ownership, Sheba is providing an accessible yet premium proposition for retailers to tap into this opportunity. 

The range will be available in two SKUs – Mixed Selection and Chicken & Salmon. The NPD also forms part of Sheba’s wider brand refresh, aimed at maintaining consumer engagement, whilst encouraging shoppers to trade up to more premium options that cater to various taste and nutritional needs. The refresh is set to support in increasing demand for the Sheba brand, helping to also onboard the next generation of pet parents.

Kittens make up 14% of the cat population and with 1 in 3 owners not changing the food they feed their pet since getting them, it presents a significant opportunity to drive lifelong value through premiumisation of the Cat Wet segment. Sheba is ideally placed to deliver on this, with the brand experiencing +5% value growth versus the broader cat wet single serve segment, which has seen +0.4% growth over the same period. As a result, to help retailers tap into this opportunity, the Sheba Kitten range has been carefully designed for kittens with grain free bite sizes, natural ingredients, vitamins, minerals and natural chunk and gravy colours. 

Adelina Bizoi, Category & Market Activation Director at Mars Petcare, comments: “We know how important it is for new pet parents to find a reliable, nutritious, and appealing meal offering for their kitten. As a result, there is a significant opportunity for retailers to be stocking propositions that cater to all kitten need states, to catch the attention of this demographic. Sheba Kitten is the perfect range for retailers to stock to leverage this potential. Not only will the nutritional and taste benefits please kittens and their parents, but the range will recruit shoppers into the Sheba brand as early as possible within their pet’s lifespan. This will increase their chances of remaining loyal shoppers through adulthood as Sheba products become preferred by their pet, ultimately helping retailers to attract and retain sales long-term.”

Sheba Kitten Mixed Selection and Chicken & Salmon is available across the grocery, wholesale, convenience and specialist pet channels now. Both SKUs will be available in multipacks of 12 x 85g with an RRP of £6.87, as well as a multipack of 40 x 85g with an RRP of £18.47. The activity is also being supported by the Sheba brand refresh campaign, which is live now until June across TV and social media, with Digital OOH activity set to take place later in the campaign.