The Canine Menu - Building a Brand in a Saturated Market

In this episode, Clayton sits down with Nick, co-founder of The Canine Menu, a unique hospitality company focused on providing high-quality food and experiences for dogs. Nick shares insights into the evolution of the pet industry, particularly how the pandemic has transformed dog ownership and the demand for dog-friendly spaces. He discusses the challenges of entering the pet food market without a traditional background in the industry, emphasising the importance of hospitality principles in their business model. KEY TAKEAWAYS The canine menu positions itself as a hospitality business for dogs rather than a traditional pet food brand. This distinction emphasises the importance of creating a unique and premium experience for customers, similar to what one would expect in a human hospitality setting. The co-founders, Nick and Jess, bring complementary skill sets to the business. Nick has a strong background in hospitality and sales, while Jess has experience in entrepreneurship and brand marketing, which together help drive the business forward. The idea for the canine menu emerged during the pandemic when dog ownership surged. Observing the lack of dog-friendly offerings in hospitality venues, Jess identified a gap in the market for dog snacks in pubs and cafes. Sourcing natural dog treats presents unique challenges, including the need for long shelf life, cleanliness, and uniformity in product appearance. The founders have had to navigate these complexities to ensure their products meet the standards expected in hospitality settings. The canine menu operates as a business-to-business (B2B) company, focusing on supplying pubs and cafes rather than selling directly to consumers. This strategy helps maintain the brand's integrity and ensures that the products are perceived as special offerings within the hospitality context. BEST MOMENTS "I think fundamentally, yeah, I get a lot of people approach me going, oh, so you've got a pet food business." "We work really, really hard on making sure we're justifying our existence within that occasion." "If you could then buy one of our chews in Sainsbury's, you might go, well actually I'm not so compelled to pick up one of your chews." "If you have a pet, you're still going to have to feed them. However, you might forgo a trip to the pub." "If I could line up 10 perfect customers, who would they be? And they can't really give a solid answer." HOST BIO Clayton Payne is an industry veteran of three decades of working in the pet industry. Brought up working in his parents' pet store, Clayton has seen the industry evolve over five different decades and has been on the cutting edge of the industry since the nineties. Building pet businesses from scratch, establishing multi-national distribution chains and having worked in every aspect of the industry, Clayton has a rare insight into the Pet Industry that is rivalled by few.  Clayton has been the spearhead of many of the industry's changes and has introduced numerous new concepts to market with a trail of success behind him. He has worked in numerous countries within the pet industry, speaks four different languages and has established both import and export relationships on all continents (excluding Antarctica). As well as being COO of one of the UKs fastest growing insect technology companies, Clayton is a Pet industry consultant who has consulted for many household brands and delivers sales training to pet trade professionals.https://www.linkedin.com/in/clayton-payne-a6772244/ https://www.tiktok.com/@petbusinessdisruptors https://www.youtube.com/@PetBusinessDisruptors This Podcast has been brought to you by Disruptive Media. https://disruptivemedia.co.uk/