Nulo says Olympics push boosted independent pet retail sales

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Nulo is positioning its Milano Cortina Olympics investment as more than a branding exercise. The company’s latest retailer-focused push drove 46 million TV impressions and, according to Pet Age, contributed to an 8.1% sales gain across the top 15 pet specialty brands in the latest 52-week period, while more than 2,500 independent pet retailers joined an Olympic-themed display program. That framing matters because it casts a high-profile sports marketing campaign as a traffic and sell-through engine for specialty retail, not just a consumer awareness play. (petfoodindustry.com)

The strategy didn’t start with Milano Cortina. Nulo had already built out its “Fuel Incredible” campaign ahead of the Paris 2024 Summer Olympics, using Olympic athletes and their pets in a cross-channel effort spanning broadcast, cable, digital, social, print, and retail. Sports Business Journal reported in 2024 that the campaign was designed to run from June through September and included out-of-home placements in Olympic Trials markets as well as retail executions. In early 2025, Nulo said its sales rose 2.1% to $261.8 million in the 52-week period ending January 18, 2025, with volume up 13.4%, citing Nielsen data for U.S. retail outlets excluding e-commerce. (sportsbusinessjournal.com)

That earlier performance appears to have given Nulo confidence to spend more on the winter cycle. In a March 4, 2026, interview with Marketing Brew, founder and CEO Michael Landa said the company increased Olympics spending by 10% to 15% from Paris to Milano Cortina, after seeing gains in sales volume, search activity, and site traffic from the 2024 campaign. He said Nulo’s Paris effort produced a 17% increase in Google searches, a 21% increase in site visits after one athlete won gold, and roughly a 3x return on investment, according to the company. Marketing Brew also reported that Nulo formalized additional sports ties, including becoming Team Canada’s official pet nutrition partner in September 2025 and U.S. Figure Skating’s official pet food sponsor in October 2025. (marketingbrew.com)

The retailer angle is especially notable. Independent pet stores have been under pressure from e-commerce, mass retail, and shifting consumer spending, so a national media campaign that can be localized through in-store displays gives specialty retailers a way to participate in a broader brand moment. Nulo has leaned into that channel repeatedly: its 2025 “Paws for a Cause” campaign ran in more than 450 participating retail locations and paired in-store promotion with athlete-backed digital content and adoption-focused merchandising. Separately, Phillips Pet announced in February 2025 that it had brought Nulo back into its premium brand portfolio, reinforcing the brand’s commitment to independent pet retailers. (petfoodindustry.com)

There’s also a broader industry lesson in how Nulo is using athletes to translate human wellness language into pet nutrition marketing. Landa told Marketing Brew that the company’s sports partnerships grew out of the idea that elite athletes think about pet food the way they think about their own diets. Over time, the messaging evolved from pure performance nutrition to the emotional role pets play in athletes’ lives, a shift that likely broadens the campaign’s appeal beyond hardcore sports audiences. That helps explain why the company has continued to invest in both medal-focused athlete partnerships and emotionally driven creative. (marketingbrew.com)

Why it matters: For veterinary professionals, the immediate takeaway isn’t that Olympic marketing changes nutritional science. It’s that it changes demand patterns, brand recall, and the questions pet parents bring into practice. When a premium food brand gains visibility through national media and independent retail displays, veterinary teams may see more clients arriving with stronger preexisting preferences, more familiarity with branded claims, and more interest in adjacent categories such as functional treats, dental chews, gently cooked meals, or cold-pressed formats that Nulo has been promoting. That can make nutrition conversations more complex, especially when clinic recommendations, retail merchandising, and consumer marketing aren’t perfectly aligned. (petfoodindustry.com)

For practices that work closely with local independent pet retailers, this kind of campaign may also create practical opportunities. If store traffic rises and pet parents are engaging more actively with premium nutrition displays, clinics may benefit from stronger referral relationships, shared client education, or clearer guidance on when a lifestyle-marketed diet is appropriate and when a therapeutic or veterinarian-directed diet is the better fit. That’s an inference based on the campaign’s retail emphasis and Nulo’s channel strategy, rather than a stated company objective, but it’s a reasonable one given how nutrition decisions are often shaped across both veterinary and specialty retail settings. (petfoodindustry.com)

What to watch: The next question is whether Nulo can convert Olympics-driven awareness into durable specialty retail growth after the Games, particularly as it extends partnerships through Los Angeles 2028, expands internationally, and continues refreshing its core product portfolio. Veterinary professionals should watch for whether this remains a short-term promotional lift or becomes a longer-term shift in how premium pet nutrition brands use sports, emotion, and independent retail to win share. (marketingbrew.com)