Morrisons moves more pet food, litter and accessories through its aisles than almost any competitor, but the number that should interest a supplier is the compliance and logistics machine standing behind the shelf.
Morrisons: Scale, Format and Footprint
- Founded: 1899, as an egg-and-butter stall in Bradford market (West Yorkshire).
- Founder: William Morrison.
- Headquarters: Hilmore House, Gain Lane, Bradford, West Yorkshire, BD3 7DL, United Kingdom.
- Ownership: Privately held; acquired by Clayton, Dubilier & Rice (CD&R) in October 2021 for approximately £7 billion.
- Scale / Revenue: FY2024 revenue from continuing operations of £15.3 billion, with total group sales of £17.0 billion for the 52 weeks to 27 October 2024.
- Stores: 495 supermarkets and 966 convenience stores (Morrisons Daily) at the end of FY2024, giving a combined trading estate of roughly 1,461 sites.
- Workforce: Approximately 101,000 employees (FY2024), down slightly after the petrol-forecourt disposal.
- Customers: The Morrisons More Card loyalty scheme now drives around 76% of supermarket sales.
- Chief Executive: Rami Baitiéh.
Everyday Low Price, Engineered
Morrisons operates a hybrid model built on large-format supermarkets, a company-owned company-operated convenience chain (Morrisons Daily, the renamed former McColl’s estate), a wholesale and franchise supply business, and an online home-delivery service. Unlike many rivals that largely outsource production, Morrisons owns substantial food-manufacturing capacity spanning meat, fish, bakery, produce, deli and flowers, and it sources a large share of its fresh protein and dairy from the UK. This vertical integration means the buying organisation values suppliers who can support both branded and own-label programmes with dependable volume, food-safety assurance and short lead times.
Centralised category buying sits with the head office in Bradford, but the convenience and wholesale channels require SKUs suited to smaller stores and faster turnover. Morrisons has been rebuilding its price competitiveness through an expanded “Aldi Price Match” style programme (covering 500+ lines) and a rolling programme of more than 2,500 deeply discounted More Card prices, which puts pressure on category margins and therefore on supplier cost structures. For pet suppliers, the relevant entry points are the grocery buying team (ambient pet food, treats, litter, accessories), the fresh and own-label development teams, and the convenience format buyers who need compact, high-velocity pet lines.
The Pet Aisle at Morrisons
Pet products are a well-established, recurring-purchase category within UK grocery, and Morrisons carries dog and cat food, small-animal and bird care, treats, chews, litter and basic accessories across both its supermarkets and convenience stores. The chain’s own-label food heritage (brands such as the “Naturally Wonky”, “V Taste” and “Home Cook” ranges) shows an appetite for private-label development, and pet is a natural extension for an own-label push given the inflation-driven shift of shoppers toward cheaper, trusted private-label options.
For exporters and suppliers, the opportunity sits in three areas. First, value-tier and mid-tier own-label pet food and treats that support Morrisons’ price-match positioning. Second, premium and natural/health-positioned pet lines for the core supermarket shopper who trades up. Third, convenience-appropriate pet SKUs (single-serve treats, small litter packs, leads and accessories) for the Morrisons Daily estate, where pet owners top up between big shops. Because Morrisons sources much of its fresh food domestically, it also increasingly welcomes suppliers who can demonstrate UK or European provenance and short, resilient supply lines for pet treats and chews.
Passing the Morrisons Gate
Suppliers to Morrisons must meet UK and EU food and feed safety standards. For pet food this means compliance with UK Feed Law, the Animal Feed (Hygiene, Sampling and Enforcement) (England) Regulations and, where relevant, EU Regulation 2017/1017 on the labelling and composition of pet food; manufacturers should hold a valid registration with the relevant competent authority (such as APHA in Great Britain) and, for products making nutritional or functional claims, an appropriate authorisation dossier. BRCGS or equivalent certification (IFS, FSSC 22000) is effectively a prerequisite for factory audits, and suppliers should expect traceability to raw-material batch level.
Non-food pet accessories must meet UK REACH, GPSR (General Product Safety Regulation) and, for items such as collars and leads, applicable mechanical-safety and labelling requirements; child-safety and small-parts considerations apply to products sold where children may be present. English-language labelling, UKCA/CE where applicable, and full ingredient and country-of-origin declaration are required. Morrisons’ centralised supplier onboarding and its use of third-party compliance platforms mean new suppliers should be prepared for a factory audit, a product specification and crisis-recall procedure, and evidence of ethical and environmental sourcing. MOQs are moderate to high for the supermarket channel but smaller for the convenience and wholesale channels; suppliers with flexible production and the ability to support promotional volumes will be best placed.
2024-2026: Scale Meets Change
In FY2024 Morrisons returned to profit for the first time since the CD&R takeover, with statutory pre-tax profit of around £2.1 billion that included a £2.5 billion gain on the sale of its petrol forecourts to Motor Fuel Group, while underlying performance also improved: pre-tax profit from continuing operations more than doubled to roughly £138 million and underlying EBITDA rose 11.2% to £835 million. Like-for-like sales grew 4.1%, and the More Card loyalty scheme reached its highest penetration on record, linking 76% of supermarket sales.
During 2024-2025 the company completed its McColl’s conversion programme (all stores now trading as Morrisons Daily) and expanded its convenience estate above 1,600 smaller-format sites, accelerating its push into the high-frequency top-up shop where pet treats and accessories sell well. In March 2025 Morrisons announced a cost-saving programme that included closing 52 cafés, all 18 market kitchens, 17 convenience stores, 13 florists and a number of counters, while in the same period it leaned on AI-powered shelf-availability cameras to reduce out-of-stocks. By mid-2025, industry data showed Lidl had narrowly overtaken Morrisons to become the UK’s fifth-largest grocer by food-and-drink market share, intensifying the value competition that shapes pet-category buying. Looking ahead, Morrisons continues to prioritise availability, price and the More Card ecosystem, all of which favour suppliers who can protect margin while supporting promotional intensity.
A Realistic Entry Path
- Lead with value and own-label: Morrisons’ price-match and loyalty-led strategy rewards competitively priced pet lines; propose a tiered range (value, core, premium) with strong own-label capability.
- Win the convenience channel: The Morrisons Daily estate is growing and suits compact, high-velocity pet SKUs for top-up missions; tailor pack sizes and POS accordingly.
- Prove compliance up front: Have UK/EU feed and product-safety certification, BRCGS/IFS, and full traceability ready before first contact to shorten the onboarding cycle.
- Support promotions: Be structured for deep, short promotional windows and reliable fill rates, as Morrisons uses price as a primary weapon against discounters.
- Emphasise provenance and resilience: Given Morrisons’ UK-sourcing heritage, highlight domestic or European supply, short lead times and supply-chain robustness.
— Scott Zhu, Founder, GlobalPetIndex
Sources & Related Reading
Related on GlobalPetIndex
- More Market Intel: Retail Channel
- Global Pet Brand Directory
- Tesco: UK Market Leadership and the Data-Driven Pet Gatekeeper
- Sainsbury’s: A High-Volume, Loyalty-Led UK Channel for Pet Suppliers
- M&S Food: A Premium, Quality-Led Route to the UK Pet Shopper
