Irish co-founded Butternut Box raises over €47m to grow dog food business

Butternut Box, a London-based fresh dog food business co-founded by Irishman Kevin Glynn, has raised £40 million (€47.2 million) from backers.

This brings to more than £80 million the amount secured by the company in investment since it was founded by Mr Glynn and David Nolan in 2016. The company, which is weighing up a move into other markets including the Republic of Ireland, said the funding would be used to support growth.

The funding round was led by the European arm of L Catterton, a $30 billion private equity firm co-founded by luxury-goods maker LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton L Catterton, which is the largest global consumer-focused private equity firm, has made more than 250 investments in brands that include Pepe Jeans, NotCo and Birkenstock.

Other existing investors White Star Capital, Five Seasons Ventures and Passion Capital also participated in the latest financing round.

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Mr Glynn, a former Goldman Sachs trader, came up with the idea for Butternut Box when Mr Nolan’s sickly dog Rudie recovered after being fed home-cooked meals.

The friends decided there was a gap in the market for a healthy dog food company. Business has boomed with the company going on to produce more than 20 million fresh meals for dogs across Britain since then.

“We are excited to be partnering with L Catterton and our existing investors again. We’ve been on a great journey together and we are energised by the fact that our existing shareholders are doubling down so that we can accelerate our efforts in customer experience, manufacturing, new products and new markets,” said Mr Glynn, who has previously appeared in Forbes’s prestigious “30 under 30” list of leading young innovators, entrepreneurs and leaders.

Computer algorithms

Butternut’s success is partly a result of the technology platform it developed, which uses computer algorithms to work out the individual needs of each dog. Dishes are cooked from fresh ingredients and portioned according to a pet’s breed, weight, sex and exercise routine.

“We have long been impressed by how Butternut Box has established itself as the trusted brand of choice in the UK among a loyal base of pet owners. And we are thrilled to strengthen our partnership further with this latest round of funding,” said Jean-Phillipe Barade, partner at L Catterton Europe.

“Butternut Box continues to leverage its innovative digital platform to raise the bar in the growing pet food market, and we look forward to collaborating with the entire Butternut team as they work to build on their considerable momentum,” he added.