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M&S launches own-brand pet food range

UK retailer Marks & Spencer has launched its own-brand pet food line Paws & Pals – a well-timed and strategic move that will appeal to loyal shoppers, says a marketing expert.

The retailer's new pet food range includes food bowls, toppers, and treats for dogs and cats and features 13 brand-new products alongside 10 rebranded items; existing Boost pet products that have now been incorporated into its own-brand line. Developed by the M&S Food team, the formulations use freeze-dried mixed vegetables and various meats for high-protein, grain-free meals and treats with additional vitamins and minerals to support pet wellbeing.

At a glance:

• Marks & Spencer has launched its own-brand pet food range Paws & Pals in the UK, featuring food bowls, toppers and treats for cats and dogs.
• The marketing around the range leans into ingredient quality and convenience to appeal to busy but conscious pet owners.
• Pet food is clearly a long-term strategy for M&S and a space that it wants to double market share in over the coming years.

“We've developed Paws & Pals with the same focus on quality that sits behind every M&S food product,” said Alex Freudmann, managing director of M&S Food. “Using 100% real ingredients, grain-free recipes, and carefully selected nutrients, we've created a range that's both nutritionally balanced and delicious for pets.”

M&S plans to expand the pet food range further in 2028 with the goal of doubling market share in the pet category. The move forms part of a wider strategy to become a “true shopping list retailer”, the company said, where customers can fulfill all their weekly needs in one place.

Pet food a “serious, long-term category” for M&S

Speaking to Ingredients Network, Vhari Russell, marketing expert and founder of The Food Marketing Experts, said the Paws & Pals launch is well-timed and feels like a “genuinely considered launch, rather than a box-ticking exercise”.

“Grocery already accounts for around half of all pet food purchases, and pet owners increasingly want to buy food for the whole family, humans and pets alike, in one trip,” Russell said. “M&S positioning this as part of its 'shopping list retailer' strategy makes complete sense: it's not just selling more products, it's giving customers one more reason to do their entire weekly shop at M&S rather than splitting it across multiple retailers.”

The fact that the range contains 13 brand-new products, alongside 10 rebranded favourites, indicates this is “not a toe-in-the-water test” for the retailer but rather M&S treating pet food as a “serious, long-term category”, she added.

The UK's pet food market is significant, with around one-third of UK households owning a dog and one-quarter owning a cat, Russell explained. But it's not just about numbers, she said; pet owners today increasingly consider these animals genuine family members.

“We're seeing real appetite for transparency around what goes into pet food, much as we've seen with human food over the past decade. And a trusted retailer name on the pack does a lot of heavy lifting on that front.”

Own-brand versus vet-recommended brands

Whilst some pet owners will of course remain fiercely loyal to specialist or vet-recommended brands, Russell said that M&S's range is a “compelling proposition” for the mainstream, convenience-led shopper.

“Established pet brands will always have a stronghold with owners who research nutrition deeply, but M&S is well placed to win the far larger group of shoppers who want good-quality, simple pet food without a special trip to a pet store.”

How the retailer is positioning and marketing its products is key here, she said. “M&S has built its reputation on trust and quality in food, and it's applying exactly the same playbook here: real ingredients, high meat content, grain-free recipes, and the same 'you can read the label and understand it' approach that's worked so well for its human food ranges (…) If a shopper already trusts M&S's quality bar for their own dinner, that trust transfers naturally to what's in the pet bowl too.”

Looking ahead, Russell said the real test will be securing repeat purchases. “Pet owners are creatures of habit once they find a food their pet likes. But the fundamentals here, which are ingredients, positioning and retail convenience, are all in the right place.”