A company focused on calming canines through cannabidiol, otherwise known as CBD, recently raised about $4 million in Series A funding.
Minneapolis-based Kradle sells products, several of which contain hemp-derived CBD, to reduce anxiety and stress in pets. Money raised from the recent round will be used to fund future business expansion and working capital needs, CEO Bill Partyka said. Driving the need for capital is the company’s recent nationwide expansion into local Walmart stores, he said.
Kradle’s products went onto the shelves of nearly 4,000 Walmart retail stores in May, said Partyka, who was a former executive at Gerber Baby Food before joining Kradle and the board of directors for its holding company, Coolhouse Botanics, near the beginning of this year.
Citing a strong start to 2022, the company announced in June a larger presence in Pet Supplies Plus stores, gaining more shelf space in the retailer’s main aisle for health and wellness, a press release said.
“So far, things are going really well,” Partyka said.
Funding for the Series A round came from private investors, Partyka said, though he declined to disclose which ones.
The company sees about $5 million in annual revenue, he said.
Coolhouse Botanics launched alongside the pet-focused brand during the summer of 2020. It was co-founded by the former CEOs of Valspar and Piper Jaffray, according to a Business Journal report at the time.
Kradle has since partnered with Prosper Brands, a strategic branding firm, where Ellen DeGeneres is a principal, according to a company press release from the fall of last year.
Coolhouse Botanics, which focuses on CBD wellness products, uses its trademarked formula called BotaniTek, combining several ingredients, like amino acids and root extract, to create its products. The company says the effect of such a formulation is the natural calming of a dog’s endocannabinoid system. Some of the products contain BotaniTek alone while others include the formulation paired with CBD.
Products come in the form of soft chews, bones, soft-bake bars, liquid packs and melts.
The regulatory environment surrounding CBD products has become clearer, Partyka said, following the passage of the 2018 Farm Bill, which effectively legalized the production of hemp, separating it from cannabis products that produce a psychoactive sensation. The effect was an “explosion” of hemp-derived CBD products in the marketplace, he said.
The market for pet CBD is estimated to reach $1.1 billion by the end of 2026, according to Brightfield Group, a marketing research firm centered on CBD and cannabis.
Coolhouse Botanics is also in the process of developing a product for humans. Clinical testing is underway with results expected later this year, Partyka said.
