Merrick has emerged as the leader in the natural pet food category by making the best food ever for the best pets ever. In 2012, Merrick partnered with Enlisted to spearhead a revolution for their brand. The resulting work was the catalyst for Merrick’s extraordinary growth, culminating in their 2015 acquisition by Nestlé Purina – the largest in pet food industry history.

CHALLENGE >     APPROACH >     RESULTS >

SERVICES
Brand Strategy  |  Packaging Design  |  POS Design  | Videography |  Social Media Photography  |  Trade Show Design

INDUSTRY
Pet Care

CHALLENGE

A fresh and relevant take on classic American values

Merrick recognized that a disparate packaging system was hampering the brand and did not represent the quality, heritage, and craftsmanship of their product. Merrick had a fresh product lineup but stale visuals, so the key objectives were to find meaningful, approachable ways to communicate ingredient and nutritional superiority, and to emphasize the brand’s values of honesty, integrity, and their unwavering dedication to making the best pet food ever.

Enlisted and Merrick launched The Revolution – a redesign of brand messaging, brand story, packaging, in-store merchandising, trade show displays, and digital content. To uncover key insights, Enlisted spent time on Merrick’s local farms and performed an in-depth study of marketing trends. 

What emerged was simple and stands true today: introduce appetite appeal, speak to the whole and real food movement, and empower pet parents to shop for their pets’ food in the same way – and under the same scrutiny – as they would shop for their own.

This strong foundation and food-forward approach has allowed for the development of more than six uniquely positioned sub-brands that provide targeted nutritional solutions for individual pet needs.

The brand continues to evolve at rapid pace with dozens of new products launching each year that define and lead the category.

After the launch of The Revolution, Merrick saw an industry-leading growth rate that is continuing to top the charts. The brand has emerged as a top player in key retailers and is poised to continue to expand and dominate the pet care category, occupying nine times the shelf space since 2012. 

This success led to a recent acquisition by Nestlé Purina, and Enlisted continues to be Merrick’s long-term partner in packaging design, video, social media, and more – from start to finish.

“I could not speak more highly of a design and business partner. Beau and his team embody the definition of partner. They work with the highest degree of integrity and ownership, and they are very willing to take input and collaborate. The Enlisted team are experts in the world of 'natural' and 'organic' and have been the key inspiration in the work here at Merrick that has transformed our business. We would not be where we are without Enlisted.”