Petbarn's Petkind campaign gave its own-label pet food a quirky personality

Petbarn's exclusive label pet food, Leaps & Bounds, had to stand out in a competitive retail pet food market and convince owners that natural food made from simple ingredients can be affordable for all.

A themed platform, 'Petkind', carried a series of humorous online content videos showing pets' unique personalities, supported by small-format OOH, social content and dynamic digital displays, with further executions rolling out through launch week.

No sales figures were published; the campaign was Petbarn's first brand campaign for its exclusive label and, per Petbarn, gave its private-label brands a personality and a genuine connection with customers.

In November 2018, IdeaWorks Sydney, part of VMLY&R, launched its first brand campaign for Petbarn's Exclusive Brands division since being appointed to the business in late 2017. The campaign, for Petbarn's exclusive-label pet food Leaps & Bounds, was themed 'Petkind' and championed pets with personality to show that natural pet food made from simple ingredients can be available to all Petkind while staying affordable for owners.

The work was a series of humorous online content videos showing pets' unique personalities and quirks — including a dog show with a definite difference — supported by small-format OOH, social content and dynamic digital displays. Petbarn senior exclusive label brand manager Drew Frame called it "a highly differentiated approach that will make a real impact for our business."

IdeaWorks regional head of retail Danny Lattouf framed the client as unusual for a retailer: one "not only investing in its private label, but enabling its quirky personality to shine through" — a deliberate point of difference in the competitive retail pet food market.

Private-label pet food usually competes invisibly on price; giving it a personality gives shoppers a reason to prefer it.

The 'Petkind' platform makes the pet, not the product, the star — matching how owners actually talk about their animals.

Retailers rarely invest brand-level creative in own labels, so the campaign itself signalled Petbarn's commitment to the division.

Private labels compete on price and lose on affection: a quirky brand personality is the cheapest way to make an own-label product worth choosing over the name brand.

The campaign launched the week of 1 November 2018 with further executions rolling out during the week. No sales results were published with the announcement.