Pet-care retailer Independent Pet Partners Holdings LLC filed for bankruptcy, seeking to sell some of its stores to its top lenders, WSJ Pro Bankruptcy reported. The Woodbury, Minn.-based company filed for chapter 11 in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Wilmington, Del., on Sunday, blaming a sudden change in consumers’ pet food preference and the COVID-19 pandemic for lost revenue. Founded in 2017, the company has expanded its footprint by acquiring regional pet-store chains. The portfolio spans about 160 stores in a dozen states across the nation, under the banners Chuck & Don’s, Kriser’s Natural Pet, Natural Pawz and Loyal Companion, according to court papers. The company generated about $220 million in net sales in 2022. As of the petition date, it had about $182 million in assets and about $215 million in liabilities, according to the filing. It recorded about $111.4 million in secured debt. The company said its focus on grain-free, high-protein dog food caused it to lose about $10 million in sales in the second half of 2019 because pet owners stopped buying that type of product after reading reports that the food could cause dilated cardiomyopathy, a potentially fatal heart disease in dogs, according to the declaration filing by Stephen Coulombe, co-chief restructuring officer of the company. The filing said the U.S. Food and Drug Administration hasn’t established a causal relationship between grain-free diets and the disease.
