Years raises multimillion-pound round to take shelf-stable fresh dog food into retail

Years, the Nottingham-based dog food brand behind a shelf-stable "fresh" format, has raised a multimillion-pound growth round led by consumer investors Verlinvest and Five Seasons Ventures.

The money funds a UK retail push, added manufacturing capacity, and a first step into Continental Europe, starting with Benelux.

What Years sells

Fresh dog food has been a fast-growing but logistically expensive category, built on chilled or frozen delivery that ties brands to cold-chain fulfilment and freezer space.

Years' pitch is a workaround. Its "Cupboard Fresh" range uses fresh, minimally processed ingredients but is stabilised for ambient storage, giving an 18-month shelf life with no refrigeration. That removes the cold chain that makes rivals expensive to ship and hard to stock on a standard retail shelf.

The brand launched direct-to-consumer with meals tailored to a dog's weight, age and nutritional profile, and says it has shipped more than 12 million personalised meals to date. It has since moved into retail through nationwide listings at Pets at Home, spanning meals, bone broths, toppers and treats.

"We founded Years to challenge the assumption that fresh pet food must come with logistical compromises," Year's co-founder Darren Beale said. "By combining research-backed nutritional quality with ambient convenience, we've created a new category that resonates with modern pet owners."

According to the brand, 66% of subscribers previously fed their dogs kibble or wet food — meaning Years is pulling customers out of mainstream categories, not just competing for existing fresh-feeders.

"That proposition is resonating well beyond the fresh feeding community," added co-founder Ivan Barashki. "We are successfully redefining how pet owners approach their pets' nutrition."

Investors with pedigree in the category

Both backers have history in pet nutrition. Five Seasons previously exited fresh dog food brand Butternut Box to private equity, and Verlinvest traces its pet portfolio to a 2014 investment in Chewy.com.

"We are excited for them to join our extensive premium pet portfolio and support their creation of the Cupboard Fresh category on an international basis," said Verlinvest managing director Ben Black.

Ivan Farneti, Five Seasons co-founder and managing partner, was an early believer in fresh pet nutrition and subscription models and sees Years as the category's next step. "By combining the nutritional benefits of fresh food with the convenience of ambient storage, Years is making premium pet nutrition accessible to a much broader consumer base while enabling true omnichannel distribution," he said. "We believe Years has the potential to become one of the defining brands in the next generation of pet nutrition."