Vegdog was founded in 2015 by Tessa Zaune-Figlar and Valerie Henssen. In 2018, the startup convinced Dagmar Wöhrl in the VOX show “Die Höhle der Löwen”. In exchange for 20 percent of the company shares, the founders received 150,000 euros from the investor as well as her support in marketing and distribution. In 2020, Katjesgreenfood then joined the Munich-based company.
The startup has now completed another funding round. Led by the Green Generation Fund, Startup Family Office and Katjesgreenfood once again invested in Vegdog. The 3.5 million euros raised will be used to expand the product range and drive further growth of the company. In parallel, Vegdog is also trying to raise another 500,000 euros from the crowd via Seedmatch.
Manon Sarah Littek from Green Generation Fund explains to Deutsche Startups:
“Thanks to its pioneering role in plant-based, sustainable pet food, Vegdog has clearly established itself as the leading DACH brand in its segment in recent years. As an impact investor, we are pleased to support Valerie Henssen and Tessa Zaune-Figlar in developing sustainable brands and products, as well as in further scaling in e-commerce and brick-and-mortar retail.”
And via LinkedIn, the VC shares:
“Global pet food production significantly contributes to climate change and produces more than 100 million tons of CO2 annually, with an upward trend as demand for high-quality meat in the quality humans are accustomed to rapidly increases in dog food. Since its founding, Vegdog has avoided over 11,000 tons of CO2 and prevented thousands of slaughter animals, while significantly improving the overall health of the dogs consuming it!”
Healthy nutrition for dogs
Co-founder Valerie Henssen explains:
“More and more people want to live more sustainably – and also reduce their four-legged friend’s ecological footprint. With Vegdog, we offer an environmentally friendly and veterinarian-approved solution. We thank our partners for their confidence in this forward-thinking approach!”
Beyond that, the startup is particularly focused on dogs with food allergies. Zaune-Figlar founded Vegdog to fill a gap in the market: due to a food allergy, she had to feed her own dog vegan on the advice of her veterinarian. However, since there were no complete foods on the market that contained all the essential supplements, she decided to fill the market gap herself. To develop the recipes, the founders sought support from a veterinarian specializing in animal nutrition. Accordingly, Vegdog’s dog food is supplemented with minerals, trace elements, and vitamins that are not covered by the ingredients used.
