Pet Food Brand Nulo Is Investing Heavily in the Olympics to Boost Search, Traffic, and Sales

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TL;DR:

Pet food brand Nulo doubles down on Olympic athlete partnerships after Paris 2024 drove a 17% search surge and 3× ROI.

Article: 

Pet food company Nulo is expanding its Olympics marketing strategy after seeing measurable gains from athlete partnerships during the Paris 2024 Games, positioning sports endorsements as a key growth channel ahead of the Milano Cortina Winter Olympics and the 2028 Los Angeles Games.

The Texas-based brand — founded by former competitive swimmer and biomedical engineer Michael Landa — has worked with Olympic athletes for over a decade. But its most recent campaign, featuring athletes and their pets, delivered tangible results. Nulo reported a 17% increase in Google searches and a 21% jump in website visits after one athlete partner won gold during the Paris Games, alongside roughly 3× return on marketing investment.

Encouraged by that performance, the company increased its Olympic marketing budget by 10%–15% for the Milano Cortina Games, expanding deals with national teams and athletes while shifting more spend toward digital, connected TV (CTV), and paid social media channels.

Nulo is driving new traffic and continuing to grow in a really tough environment, CEO Michael Landa admitted.

The strategy taps into a broader marketing trend: brands leveraging the personal lives of athletes, especially their relationships with pets — to create emotional connections with fans. Nulo’s campaigns increasingly emphasize pets as sources of emotional support for elite athletes, aligning with growing awareness around athlete mental health.

More than 30 Olympic athletes, including stars like Michael Phelps and Simone Biles, have collaborated with the brand over the years. Recent campaigns feature medal contenders such as ice dancers Madison Chock and Evan Bates and speed skater Jordan Stolz, with content distributed primarily across social media platforms. 

Industry observers note that Olympic marketing has shifted dramatically toward digital engagement. The International Olympic Committee recently reported “unprecedented digital engagement” during the Games, reinforcing why brands like Nulo are prioritizing social and creator-driven campaigns over traditional advertising.

Looking ahead, Nulo plans to extend its Olympic presence through the Paralympics and expand internationally into markets such as Europe and Mexico. If the strategy continues to deliver measurable returns, athlete-led storytelling could become an increasingly powerful playbook for challenger brands competing in crowded consumer categories.