Xcel Brands Partners with K9 Wear for Cesar Millan Pet Brand

Xcel Brands has partnered with K9 Wear to create a pet brand inspired by Cesar Millan. The partnership will leverage Xcel's expertise in designing, producing, and marketing branded consumer products, as well as its experience in live streaming and social commerce sales. The Cesar Millan pet brand will offer apparel, accessories, and other products for pets, expanding Xcel's portfolio of consumer lifestyle brands.

New York, July 14, 2025 – Xcel Brands (NASDAQ: XELB), a leading media and consumer products company, has entered into a licensing partnership with K9 Wear Inc. to develop and launch a new pet brand, Trust. Respect. Love by Cesar Millan. This collaboration brings together K9 Wear’s expertise in functional, high-quality pet products with Xcel’s proven success in brand building, licensing, and live-stream commerce.

The new brand, Trust. Respect. Love by Cesar Millan, will feature a range of premium pet essentials, including toys, training tools, accessories, nutrition, grooming tools, small appliances, and electronics. The products will be designed to enhance the pet ownership experience and reflect Cesar Millan’s core values of trust, respect, and love. The brand aims to create a pet lifestyle brand through the lens of Cesar Millan, ensuring both pets and their owners benefit from the highest standards of quality and design [1].

Frank Cammarata, CEO of K9 Wear, expressed his enthusiasm for the partnership, stating, “Merging our company's vast pet-industry expertise with Cesar's specialization and emphasis on Form and Function will enable us to deliver the most unique and innovative pet-accessory products to the market” [1].

Cesar Millan, a world-renowned dog behaviorist, brings over two decades of experience to the pet industry. He is committed to helping pet owners achieve lasting harmony with their dogs through products that are both functional and deeply aligned with the principles of balanced relationships [1].

Robert W. D'Loren, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Xcel Brands, commented on the collaboration, “This partnership marks another milestone in Xcel’s mission to create exceptional consumer products across multiple categories. With the pet industry experiencing tremendous growth, this partnership allows us to meet the demand for high-quality pet accessories while continuing to expand our brand portfolio and category expansion” [1].

The brand is set to launch in early 2026, with availability through select retailers, e-commerce platforms, and live shopping channels. As part of the brand’s launch strategy, K9 Wear will be showcasing the brand at Global Pet Expo, the pet industry’s premier trade event, taking place in March 2026 [1].

References:

[1] https://www.morningstar.com/news/globe-newswire/9494175/xcel-brands-and-k9-wear-announce-licensing-partnership-to-launch-the-pet-accessories-categories-of-the-trust-respect-love-by-cesar-millan-brand