Piper invests in Omlet pet accessories brand
Piper has acquired a significant minority stake in the Omlet online pet accessories brand for £33 million.
The brand was founded in 2004 by James Tuthill, Johannes Paul, William Windham and Simon Nicholls, who met at London’s Royal College of Art. During the final year of their postgraduate course in Industrial Design Engineering, they developed the Eglu chicken coop, which went on to win a number of awards and is now included in the permanent collection of the Victoria & Albert Museum.
Omlet’s offering has subsequently evolved to include additional core categories for dogs, cats and small animals and sales are forecast to reach £40 million this year. One third of its sales come from the UK, with the rest coming from Europe and the US.
James Tuthill, co-founder of Omlet, said: “We are incredibly proud of everything we have achieved so far with Omlet. Simon, Will, Hanns and I have loved every minute of this journey and we feel Piper is the perfect partner to work alongside us as we realise our combined ambition to grow Omlet into the number one global premium pet product brand.”
It is the eleventh investment from Piper VI and its fourth in the pet space, after it previously invested in Forthglade, Barking Heads and Bruce’s. Other prior investments include the likes of Bloom & Wild, Mindful Chef, Mous and Monica Vinader.
Rory Gibbs, Piper’s investment director, said: “We are delighted that the team at Omlet selected Piper as their preferred partners and are excited by the growth opportunities the business has identified, in a sector we understand well. Their unique and thoughtful product designs are much loved by customers around the world. We look forward to supporting the team and are looking forward to working again with Don Henshall, former CEO of Farrow & Ball, who will be joining the business as chairman.”
