We've had pets in our family for generations. My mum's parents' dog Tomy accompanied her to the bus stop for school. He would also wait for her at the bus stop when she got back. Tomy, though, was still seen primarily as a guard dog.
Fast-forward to today, my parents' dogs in Delhi—Mango and Frooti, no less—are my mum's "favourite son".
Her human son (my brother and I) also have two pets each, and we obsess over their diets, toys, bedding, and even outfits. And while Mango and Frooti mostly eat meat and human food, our pets have specialized diets recommended by their respective vets. They're also often surrounded by foster cats and dogs we shelter every so often. The elevation of pets into beloved members of the family is a shift that is happening all over the country, and it has sparked an evolution in the pet-care industry as well.
Delhi-based Heads Up For Tails (HUFT) saw this change coming a few years ago. It started offering specialized diets, toys—including for senior dogs—grooming, pet spas, clothes, and treats early on. Retailing across online and offline channels—40+ stores across nine cities—HUFT breathed fresh life into an industry that was largely staid, if not stagnant.
It raised a $37 million Series A round led by venture capital players Sequoia India and Verlinvest just last month. And the pandemic only sped things along for the company. “We do about 3,000 orders a day split between online and offline. We're on track to do about Rs 150 crore ($20 million) [in sales] this year. Great!!
But while HUFT rides the generational shift in pet care—from 'pet owners' to 'pet parents'—it's not alone in the industry. In today's article we digs into HUFT's chances and challenges in an industry that remains largely un-organised in India, have to gear up Head.
