Interview by Craig Kaminer Quotes by Reed Howlett 

Recently, I sat down with Reed Howlett, the CEO of Freely Pet, one of the newest St. Louis pet food companies to launch here, to get his take on the changing pet food industry, how millennials are changing pet care as we know it, and why Freely has a team of certified pet nutritionists just a chat away to help pet parents better manage their pet’s nutrition and wellbeing. 

 What is Freely doing to help pet parents raise healthier pets? 

“Many things. First, we want to keep pet food simple and it's gotten confusing. There's no one right way to feed dogs and cats. Experts will tell you to choose complete and balanced food and choose one that's appropriate for all life stages. But within those parameters, there's ample room for a variety of foods. I think the key is educating pet parents who want to do the right thing to keep it simple but allow them to tailor feeding so that they feel they're making a difference overall for their pet.  

To keep things simple, we started with the lowest common denominator, which is dry and wet diets. They make up the preponderance of the category. We wanted to get that right, because that's where we feel there is the greatest opportunity to cut through the clutter. That’s what most people feed today and where the majority of the confusion lies.” 

How are millennials changing the pet parenting landscape? 

“I think one way is that millennial pet parents want to know what their pet is doing at all times. They seek a connection through social media with other parts of their lives and their pets are no different. We see lots of pets at work now, obviously, which is for emotional support, but also because pet parents want to know that their pet is being well taken care of day in and day out. And if they can't physically be with their pet at work, they'll set up cameras at home to watch what that pet is doing. Or they'll put that pet in daycare where they have cameras and they know what it is doing.” 

How is Freely helping millennials be better pet parents? 

“We're trying to provide answers, understanding, and access to information about nutrition that pet parents crave, because they're that involved in all aspects of their pets’ lives. When it comes to nutrition, a lot of millennial and Gen Z pet parents want to know more. They need to have more confidence in the products because this is a big deal for them. And, that attitude is born of the sense of emotional connection and desire to be deeply involved with their pet.  

I think millennial pet parents are very ingredient focused and they want to know why each ingredient is in there. They want to know where the ingredients are sourced. They ultimately want to know that we've got a quality system that ensures that every batch of food is up to spec. And so there's a level of interest in ensuring that Freely as a company is transparent about all aspects from sourcing through production. That’s why our approach is ‘we'll tell you anything.’” 

What are some of Freely’s most unique products? 

“We started by identifying the biggest problem that needs to be solved within the pet food category - and it's not choice. If you go into a Petco or PetSmart and you look around, the problem is not a lack of choice. The problem is that pet owners feel overwhelmed and don't know how to navigate the category. The pet parent that we are thinking of is the one who's looking for the combination of a product solution combined with a service solution. What do I mean by that? Well, on the product side, we're not going to try to be everything to everyone. We have 44 sellable products. That's it. They're all limited ingredient diets. And, they're going to have a really simple to read and understand package. 

We've got a vegetarian diet in both a dry and wet formulation. There's a great deal of demand for those and not many options. We also have a 50/50 mix of our turkey diet and our vegetarian blend in a dry food we call Flexitarian. It is an option that I think is very appealing to those who still want to feed some animal protein, but again, be mindful of planetary health and animal welfare. So, we really try to be thoughtful about those options that the millennial consumer in particular would be looking for. 

And we all know about the growing popularity of bone broth as a human food. Our bone broths are made for us by a company which makes bone broths for people so you can rest assured your pet is getting a very high quality product.  And they are selling very well.” 

Why did you invest in the Freely Nutrition Center at this stage of your business? 

“We can help you with the product and now we can also help you on the service side by answering your questions. And by the way, this is not just for millennials or GenZ. It's also for GenXers and Boomers who have pets in very large numbers. If you go to retirement communities or retirement towns in this country, and you look at all of the people in their 60s and 70s with pets today, it's extraordinary. There are massive numbers, but again, everybody ultimately is asking, ‘how can I know I'm doing the right thing?’ We're here to simplify that through product and through service. If you have any nutritional questions, just chat with Freely free of charge at freelypet.com.” 

At a time when service has all but vanished, what does the future of service look like in the pet food industry? 

“I believe that the next big thing within the pet industry, and I don't just mean food, I mean the whole pet ecosystem in the US and and beyond, is going to be about service. If you look at a lot of these breakthrough brands, they are service brands now, not just product brands. And again, as the category moves online, sales are increasingly online and include knowledge, service, expertise, and consultation. 

Imagine if you will, having a nutritional coach who would travel the full journey with you from the time you get that puppy or adopt that dog in concert with your vet. Now imagine too that you also have somebody who is an expert in the way to best exercise given breeds? Imagine if you had somebody who is an expert in how to best train given breeds? We are capable of serving up a solution set to a pet parent that is about an overall strategy for pet parenthood. We, as the food brand, take a leadership position because obviously nutrition is so central to a pet's wellness overall. We think there's an opportunity to expand out in that way. We're not there today, but we actually think that pet parents are going to be looking for that level of solution in the not too distant future.” 

Reed Howlett is the CEO and founder of Freely Pet, LLC, a premium pet food brand based in Brentwood, Missouri, whose purpose is to simplify the pet food category and enable pet parents to nourish their pets with confidence and ease. Freely offers premium limited ingredient diet dog and cat food, as well as a Nutrition Center staffed with highly skilled pet nutrition experts ready to help pet parents via phone, live chat, or email.