Scruffs (United Kingdom)
Founded in 2005, Scruffs® is now firmly established as one of Europe’s leading brands of luxury pet bedding. With distribution in over forty countries throughout Europe, the Americas and Australasia, Scruffs has steadily expanded its reach and continues to add more markets to its portfolio each and every year.
Premium bedding
Based in Manchester, England, Scruffs (for dogs) and Tramps® (for cats) focus on producing premium bedding for pets. Combining a huge variety of high-end fabrics more commonly found in home furnishings with a colour palette that reflects the most current global home textile and fashion trends, Scruffs pet beds seamlessly fit into any modern home decor.
Innovation
Innovation is a key platform of the Scruffs philosophy. From self-heating fabrics to orthopaedic memory foam fills, from 100% recycled bedding made from plastic bottles to self-cooling gels, Scruffs has a comprehensive and diverse range that ticks every box, for every dog and cat. The Scruffs team is constantly evaluating its product portfolio and identifying what works best and what can be improved.
Contact with customers
Inspiration comes from all corners, and apart from Scruffs designers and buyers (all of whom have dogs or cats), it is essential to stay in touch with pet owners. This is why Crufts is so important to the team at Scruffs, and is the one show that is permanently marked in their diaries. It’s the one chance the team has to really talk to its customers and find out what they like, or don’t like, about their products.
Another invaluable resource is social media – Facebook and Twitter give consumers a voice and the chance to be heard. Scruffs employ a dedicated social media representative, who interacts daily with their audience, now in excess of 25,000. One of the team’s favourite things about social media is when users post pictures of their dogs in a Scruffs bed.
Quality control
Since its inception, the Scruffs brand has been built on a reputation of unmatched consistency and quality control. With their own team based in the Far East, they are proud that their returns rate in 2014 was approximately 1 in 10,500 worldwide. Each year they continue to strive for excellence in every part of design and production.
Distribution
Scruffs is distributed to about 1,800 retailers in the UK, of which about three-quarters are pet shops and garden centres, but this figure does not include the retail outlets. The brand is also actively marketed in the export sector, with strong growth being witnessed in the Asia-Pacific region, notably Australia, South Korea, the Philippines and China. International shows are firmly on the agenda and Scruffs makes an appearance at major pet trade shows such as Germany’s Interzoo, China’s CIPS, Italy’s Zoomark and North America’s Global Pet Expo.
A look ahead
2015 will be an exciting year for Scruffs with the launch of over 200 new SKUs along with the completion of their new head office and 24,000 sqm European distribution hub in Manchester. This will enable them to keep providing the service levels they are known for and continue to support their global partners to the best of their abilities, whilst ensuring that Scruffs continues to do what it does best: making products that improve the lives of pets and owners worldwide.