How Coyote Helped Edgard &Cooper Scale Their Business

how edgard and cooper scaled their business and kept pets all over europe happy + healthy (with the help of coyote logistics)

Quick Shipper Facts

  • Producer of healthy dog and cat food
  • Made up of 120 humans and 60 pets
  • Heavily focused on sustainability (kibble packaging is 100% biodegradable)
  • Donates 1% of their sales to charity

Coyote Services Used

  • Full truckload capacity
  • Less-than-truckload capacity
  • Dedicated support

Challenge

International pet food producer, Edgard &Cooper, grew rapidly and their supply chain could not keep up with the demands of their business. They needed a reliable transportation provider to source flexible capacity so they could stay on top of customer orders and sustain continuous growth.

Result

With the help of Coyote Logistics, Edgard &Cooper was able to tap into a large network of carriers and source flexible capacity to meet rising customer demand. As business expanded, they added several new lanes, tripled their truckload shipments and converted some of their loads to less-than-truckload (LTL).

Background: Healthy Food, Happy Pups

Edgard &Cooper was founded by two friends who had one complaint in common: neither could find pet food that made their dogs, Edgard and Cooper, happy and healthy.

Fueled by their mutual dissatisfaction, co-founders Louis and Koen conducted extensive dog food research and decided to launch a business dedicated to producing healthy, delicious pet food. In 2014, they perfected their recipe and Edgard &Cooper was born.

While the company’s primary focus is producing fresh, tasty food that supports the wellbeing of pets, they are also largely focused on sustainability.

Their plant-based kibble and treat bags are 100% biodegradable, their tins and cups are made from recyclable material and according to their newly released Zero Pawprint Plan, Edgard &Cooper will be carbon emission free within a couple of years.

Want to learn more about supply chain sustainability? Download Coyote’s free original research study to compare global sustainability trends.

How Coyote Logistics Helped Edgard &Cooper Mitigate Volatility and Sustain Growth

Over the last few years, Edgard &Cooper expanded into more stores throughout Europe. Every month, their products were added to new grocery stores, online and walk-in pet shops, and speciality stores.

When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, Edgard &Cooper experienced a sudden spike in demand, as many people brought new pets home and long-time pet owners stocked up on more food than usual.

Once mandated lockdowns began, online orders surged. However, Edgard &Cooper’s supply chain was not prepared to respond to this concentrated uptick in demand, and they were unable to fulfill all of their incoming orders.

According to Willemijn Vanmaele, Edgard &Cooper’s Supply Chain Coordinator, “A stable supply chain makes or breaks business. If we can’t rely on our supply chain for our B2B and B2C orders, we have big issues.”

To add flexible capacity that would allow them to fulfill surging customer orders, Edgard &Cooper started working with Coyote Logistics.

At the beginning of their working relationship, Edgard &Cooper was shipping 4-5 truckloads per week. Now, with the help of Coyote Logistics, Edgard &Cooper ships 10-15 truckloads a week.

Additionally, with the help of their dedicated Coyote Logistics account manager, Edgard &Cooper converted some of their truckload shipments to LTL shipments to maximize efficiency.

Working with Coyote Logistics helped restore stability across Edgard &Cooper’s supply chain, thanks to a large, responsive carrier network and the security of a trusted provider relationship.

Coyote Logistics helped us think about the next steps — how we could resolve the issues and prevent them from happening in the future.” – Willemijn Vanmaele, Supply Chain Coordinator, Edgard &Cooper

Combination of Dedicated Support &Digital Solutions

In addition to flexible capacity, working with Coyote Logistics has given Edgard &Cooper access to a dedicated account manager and Coyote Logistics’ proprietary digital freight platform, CoyoteGO®.

These resources have allowed Edgard &Cooper to resolve issues quickly and gain visibility into the status of their shipments.

According to Willemijn Vanmaele, Edgard &Cooper’s Supply Chain Coordinator, “Having dedicated support and an online portal is a very good combination. We can check our shipments online to see if something has been picked up or is already on its way. If we need responsive customer service, I can email or call our dedicated account manager and get the information that I need.”

Summary

We are always growing, but our volume is very hard to predict. From one week to another, we might need double the capacity for a certain lane. There are also external factors — unforeseen circumstances that we have no control over. It can be a lot of pressure. With Coyote Logistics, it’s nice to know that we aren’t alone and someone is helping us resolve these issues.” – Willemijn Vanmaele, Supply Chain Coordinator, Edgard &Cooper

Coyote Logistics’ large network of carriers provided Edgard &Cooper the responsiveness and flexibility they needed to reduce volatility, sustain growth and continue to expand their business throughout Europe.

Want to know how Coyote Logistics can help drive your business forward?