Investment firm looking to sell $1B stake in cat litter business Whisker

Chicago-headquartered investment firm Pondera Holdings is reportedly exploring options to sell its controlling stake in Whisker, a maker of self-cleaning litter boxes, for a valuation nearing $1 billion (€924.9M).

If the deal is successful, Whisker’s capital structure may be impacted by new debt and equity refinancing, leading to its recapitalization. According to Reuters, Whisker is evaluating its options with investment banks Bank of America and Houlihan Lokey.

Whisker was launched in 1999 by Brad Baxter. The company’s first offering was the Litter-Robot, an automatic, self-cleaning litter box. Pondera Holdings is known to back companies in the consumer, retail and pet industries, including Wag‘n Tails.

Whisker declined to comment after a request from GlobalPETS, while Pondera did not respond.

Increased interest in pet care

Media speculates that this partnership could point toward substantial capital and strategic shifts in the pet care market as there has been increased interest from investment firms in innovative pet care companies.

Earlier this year, private equity (PE) firm Blackstone acquired online pet marketplace Rover in an all-cash deal worth $2.3 billion (€2.1B).

Portuguese consortium Sonae Group also recently completed the acquisition of Nordic pet retailer Musti Group, for which it submitted a bid of €868 million ($938.6M) last year.

In 2023, PE firm PAI Partners acquired pet food manufacturer Alphia in a transaction worth around $1 billion (€924.9M). Similarly, Chicago-based PE firm Wind Point Partners acquired UK manufacturer Assisi Pet Care in October last year for an undisclosed amount.