How retailers’ buying changes affect the range of cat foods on UK shelves

Why your supermarket’s buying choices now decide what’s in your cat’s bowl

Cat owners tell us they’re confused: one week their cat’s favourite pouches are on the shelf, the next they’re replaced by smaller multipacks or a new own‑brand. That uncertainty comes from a simple source — retailer buying decisions. In 2026, changes at the top of retail chains, rapid convenience store rollouts and loyalty platform overhauls are having a direct, visible effect on the brands, portion sizes and specialty diets available to UK cat owners.

The new reality: shelf choice is a retailer’s strategic tool

Retailers control which products get space, which SKUs get promoted and how much inventory a store carries. When a retailer adjusts strategy — appointing a new MD, opening hundreds of convenience stores, or merging loyalty programmes — those decisions ripple into the pet food aisle. Understanding that link helps you make better buying choices and ensures your cat’s nutritional needs aren’t collateral damage of corporate strategy.

What changed recently (late 2025 — early 2026)

Three notable moves from late 2025 and early 2026 illustrate how retailer strategy affects pet food availability:

• Liberty’s leadership shift: Liberty promoted Lydia King from group buying and merchandising director to retail managing director in early 2026. With a buying background, an MD with that pedigree typically prioritises range rationalisation, supplier partnerships and margin optimisation — all of which affect pet ranges.
• Asda Express expansion: Asda passed 500 convenience stores with its Asda Express rollout. Convenience stores target quick purchases and have less shelf space, influencing the move to smaller packs and single‑serve sachets instead of large bags.
• Frasers Plus loyalty integration: Frasers Group combined Sports Direct membership into Frasers Plus late 2025, creating a unified rewards platform able to deliver hyper‑targeted offers across categories — including pet products where stocked.

How these retailer moves change what you find on UK shelves

Here’s a practical breakdown of the direct effects cat owners will notice in 2026.

1. Brands and own‑label shifts (retailer buying pet food)

When a retailer hires a buying‑focused MD (like Liberty’s Lydia King) or reconfigures buying teams, two things typically happen:

• Range rationalisation: Fewer SKUs that sell slowly are cut. That often means smaller or niche brands lose shelf space.
• Private label growth: Retailers push own‑brand cat foods that give higher margins and easier price control.

For shoppers this means popular national brands may still be available online but could be squeezed from local store shelves. If you rely on a specialist brand, expect to see it more often on supplier or online pet retailer listings than in convenience or smaller supermarkets.

2. Portion sizes and format changes (Asda Express pet stock)

Asda’s expansion of Asda Express — now over 500 sites — is a textbook example. Convenience formats favour compact SKUs: single‑serve pouches, 70–100g trays and smaller wet food multipacks rather than 3–12kg bags.

Why it matters:

• Single‑cat homes and owners who feed wet food will see more sachets and pouches on local convenience shelves.
• Owners who use large dry food bags may find fewer bulk options in Express stores and will need to visit larger supermarkets or order online.

3. Promotional mix and loyalty‑led assortment (Frasers Plus pet range)

Frasers Group’s integration into Frasers Plus demonstrates how loyalty platforms shape offers. Unified loyalty data allows retailers to personalise pet product promotions to segmented customers — so if you’ve bought pet food before, you’ll get targeted coupons and bundles in app or email.

But there’s a flip side: retailers often prioritise shelf space for lines that perform in loyalty analytics and promotional calendars, which can limit experimental or specialist diets that don’t move quickly.

Specialist diet availability: the most vulnerable category

Specialist diets — prescription renal support, hypoallergenic, grain‑free, raw alternatives, and veterinary therapeutic ranges — are the most susceptible to retailer buying swings. Stocking these lines is costly (low turnover, higher price), and some chains shift them online or to a few destination stores where store staff can support vet‑prescription verification.

What’s changed in 2026:

• Retailers with data‑rich loyalty programmes (Frasers Plus and others) now know which stores have enough specialist diet demand to justify shelf space.
• Convenience store rollouts (Asda Express) often exclude full therapeutic ranges — making clinic channels and veterinary pharmacies more important.
• Buyers with veterinary and buying experience (like Liberty’s new MD) may negotiate exclusive or co‑branded private label prescription ranges with suppliers — a trend we expect to grow.

Real‑world case study: a city neighbourhood over 12 months

In a mid‑sized UK city, a neighbourhood saw an Asda Express open in 2025, Liberty refresh local department store displays in late 2025 and a regional Frasers outlet start loyalty promotions in early 2026. The net effect for cat owners:

• Convenience Immediate: More small‑format pouches for impulse purchases at Asda Express.
• Department Store Curate: Liberty’s new buying direction reduced variety of national wet brands but introduced a premium own‑label pouch line with clearer ingredient claims.
• Loyalty Offers: Frasers Plus targeted pet buyers with bundled discounts for dry food and accessories, moving inventory faster but biasing shelf stock toward bestselling SKUs.

The neighbourhood clinic reported owners increasingly buying prescription diets online or directly from vets when stores trimmed specialist shelves.

How to adapt as a cat owner — practical, actionable steps

Retail strategy changes aren’t your problem — but they affect your shopping. Here’s a checklist to protect your cat’s nutrition and budget in 2026.

1. Track loyalty apps and sign up — If your chosen retailer uses a loyalty platform (Frasers Plus and others), enable pet‑category alerts and mobile coupons. You’ll get early notices of promotions and stock shifts.
2. Get supplier QR codes — Many premium and prescription brands now include QR codes linking to retailer availability lists. Scan to find which local store or online partner stocks your formula.
3. Use store assortment tools — Large supermarket websites often display exact in‑store availability. Before you travel for a 10kg bag, check online whether the store stocks it.
4. Set up subscription delivery — For important or bulky items (large dry food bags, therapeutic diets), use online subscriptions to lock in supply and pricing.
5. Ask for range requests in store — Retailers monitor customer feedback. Ask the store manager to stock a specialist diet if multiple customers request it — data matters to buying teams.
6. Work with your vet for prescriptions — If local stores cut therapeutic lines, use your vet’s dispensing service or approved online pharmacies that handle prescriptions.
7. Compare unit price, not pack price — With more portion variety on convenience shelves, check pence per 100g to compare value across pouches, trays and bags.
8. Keep a 2–3 week emergency supply — Supply shifts and targeted promotions can temporarily push certain SKUs off shelves. A small buffer prevents dietary disruption for sensitive cats.

What retailers are optimising for — and what that means for you

Retail buying teams focus on three clear KPIs in 2026: sell‑through rate, margin per square metre and loyalty engagement. Each of those incentives produces visible effects on pet ranges:

• Sell‑through rate: Faster‑moving SKUs get priority; slow, niche therapeutic ranges move online.
• Margin per square metre: Private label and high‑margin specialty packs supplant low‑margin national SKUs.
• Loyalty engagement: SKU choices favour items that generate repeat purchases and digital redemption activity.

Predictions for the next 18 months (through 2027)

Based on recent moves — Liberty’s appointment, Asda Express rollouts and Frasers Plus integration — we expect these trends:

• More curated pet ranges in physical stores: Fewer SKUs but better curated assortments matched to local demographics.
• Therapeutic diets centralised online: Prescription and specialist formulas will be increasingly available via direct‑to‑consumer channels or pharmacy partners.
• Data‑driven localisation: Retailers will use loyalty and POS data to tailor store assortments by neighbourhood, so what’s stocked in one town may differ from another.
• Sustainable and alternative proteins scale up: Expect more sustainable and alternative proteins as brands respond to environmental KPIs pushed by buyers.
• Smarter micro‑packs for convenience: Small pouches with recyclable packaging will grow in convenience chains.

How manufacturers and specialist retailers are responding

Manufacturers are adapting: they’re consolidating SKUs, offering retailer‑specific lines and investing in direct online channels. Specialist pet retailers and subscription startups are capitalising on the gap left by convenience‑focused assortments by emphasising specialist diet availability and customer support.

Key manufacturer strategies include:

• Exclusive SKUs for big retailers to secure shelf space.
• Hybrid fulfilment models supplying both stores and direct online subscriptions.
• Clearer labelling and nutrition stories to win shelf promotions driven by loyalty data.

Checklist for buying smart in 2026

Before you buy, run through this quick checklist to make sure you get the right product for your cat — and the best value.

• Have you checked your retailer’s app or site for in‑store stock? (Asda Express and major chains show live availability.)
• Is the item part of a loyalty promotion? Activate the coupon before checkout.
• Is this a specialist or prescription diet? If yes, confirm the dispensing channel (store, vet, online pharmacy).
• Compare pence per 100g for wet vs dry and single packs vs multipacks.
• If you’re trying a new format (smaller pack sizes), buy a trial quantity first to confirm acceptance.

“Retailer buying strategy is no longer invisible to shoppers — it shapes what you can buy, how often and at what price.”

Final takeaways: what every UK cat owner should do now

Retailer choices — from personnel changes at Liberty to Asda Express’s convenience expansion and Frasers Plus’s loyalty integration — are actively reshaping which cat food brands, portions and specialist diets land on UK shelves in 2026. That shift favours convenience and loyalty‑friendly SKUs over broad in‑store variety.

To protect your cat’s nutrition and your budget:

• Use loyalty data to your advantage — sign up and set pet alerts.
• Prefer subscriptions for essential or bulky items to avoid in‑store assortment gaps.
• Work with your vet for specialist diets and consider online veterinary pharmacies if local stores lack stock.
• Request products in store — buyer teams listen to aggregated demand.

Want personalised help?

If you’re juggling a finicky eater, a prescription diet or comparing value across retailers, we can help. Our team tracks UK supermarket pet trends and retailer buying moves weekly — and we’ll send you a tailored list of where to buy your cat’s exact formula, the best loyalty offers right now and alternatives if your usual product disappears from shelves.

Call to action: Click the link to get a free, customised shopping plan for your cat (including where to find specialist diets and best current loyalty deals) — or join our weekly pet range alerts to never miss a restock.

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