Grub Club now selling from Pets at Home

Having found a way to be kinder to pets and the planet with his product range of insect-based dog food, London Business School alumnus Alessandro Di Trapani has announced the launch of the Grub Club range of dog foods into British pet supplies retailer, Pets at Home.

Select products from Grub Club’s lineup will be available at 466 Pets at Home stores throughout the UK, as well as on the retailer’s e-commerce website.

Founded in 2020, Grub Club seeks to create more sustainable dog foods by leveraging insect proteins. Upon learning that pets consume 20 per cent of the world’s fish and meat proteins, Alessandro Di Trapani, chief executive officer, and Hugh Petit, chief operating officer, founded Grub Club to “shake up the industry.”

Grub Club replaces traditional, animal-based proteins with alternative proteins from black soldier fly larvae (BSFL), which offers several environmental benefits. According to Grub Club, its food was found to help reduce carbon emissions by up to 1.5 tonnes per dog annually. Additionally, the company found that if just one per cent of the UK’s 12 million dog population switched to Grub Club, it could help prevent 180,000 tonnes of carbon emissions per year.

In honing its focus on insects, Grub Club offers hypoallergenic, protein-packed, complete-and-balanced dog foods, as well as treats and other functional nutrition products. The company has witnessed success in the market, growing its online revenue by 260 per cent in 2023 and fostering a loyal subscriber base.

Since its launch, Grub Club has expanded its retail footprint, entering independent stores like Daylesford Organic, Gladwells and others. This latest retail expansion into Pets at Home will further the company’s reach.

“Our partnership with Pets at Home gives us an incredible opportunity to provide dog owners across the UK with a more sustainable way to feed their dog,” Di Trapani said. “Unlocking this distribution is crucial for us as we strive towards our mission of making the pet food industry more sustainable and providing a healthy alternative for dogs who suffer with sensitivities and intolerances to traditional pet food.”

Pets at Home will carry Grub Club’s insect-based dog treat range, which includes Poop Perfector, a digestive health treat; Sit Roll Treat Repeat, a daily treat; Canine Shine, a skin and coat health treat; and Clean Teeth & Chill, daily dental sticks.

Grub Club’s venture with Pets at Home comes on the heels of the company winning the Sky Media Zero Footprint Fund 2023, in which Grub Club received the £1m media value grand prize. The company was also recognised by FuturePlus, winning the Impact HERE Award and was awarded £100,000 worth of screen promotion. Additionally, Grub Club was named the Best Eco-Friendly Pet Brand by Marie Claire in 2023.

Launched in the second year of his MBA at LBS, Grub Club’s Ale and Hugh attracted an initial £420,000, raised from friends, family and an early-stage fund, allowing them to start the company with three varieties of dog treats. A further £560,000 has now been raised, allowing for a further expansion of the product range which may help move the company from e-commerce into full outlet retail in the coming year.

With the lifecycle of the black soldier fly allowing for very efficient production, insect protein is clearly the future of pet food.

Support from LBS

Ale credits LBS, the support of Institute of Entrepreneurship and Private Capital (IEPC) and the Incubator programme with offering Grub Club a great “daily support system”, and with helping him to develop both hard and soft skills for his future life as an entrepreneur.