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Can pet shops compete with supermarkets?

Can independents combat the supermarkets' domination of the dog and cat market? Three pet industry experts give us their opinions.

Angela Critchley
International marketing manager, PetSafe

There is no question that supermarkets dominate the dog and cat markets from a pet food point of view. Supermarkets can benefit through the convenience factor and strong purchasing power that the smaller independents cannot compete against.

However, as with everything stocked by supermarkets, they will only consider ranges that appeal to the masses and will only have a limited range in the pet aisles.

This provides an opportunity for pet retailers to take leadership in the small animals market as they can offer much more than the supermarkets – and not just in terms of product lines.

They can position themselves as animal experts by offering an advisory service that simply isn’t available at supermarkets; and as the owners and staff will generally have many years of experience of different animal types, they can cover many topics from the correct food to housing and grooming products.

This expertise is invaluable, instills confidence with customers and, in turn, gives the opportunity for up and cross-selling.

Pet shops should also concentrate on stocking other ranges that the supermarkets do not offer, such as collars, leads, bedding, housing and speciality foods for all animal types, thus expanding their offering and appeal to all pet owners.

Independents also have the flexibility to be able to run promotions and initiatives, building brand loyalty among their customer base, and providing an ideal opportunity to promote the expertise of their staff. This will demonstrate to customers why, for all their animal needs, pet shops should be the retail outlet of choice.

Alan Walmsley
Marketing manager, Supreme Pet Foods

The pile-it-high-and-sell-it-cheap mentality that pervades the dog and cat market has seen a significant erosion of pet retailers’ market share. Many independent retailers are unable to compete on price and are losing ‘convenience’ customers to the major grocery chains.

Therefore, it is vital that retailers make the most of the customers that do come through the shop door. This means creating good customer relationships and implementing profitable pricing strategies.

Customers visit their local pet shop not because they view it as the cheapest option, but because it offers them something different; a wider range of specifically tailored high quality products, a wealth of specialist knowledge and a higher level of personal service are just some examples.

With customers already prepared to pay a perceived higher price than they would at a supermarket, pet retailers would be better off focusing on higher quality pre-packed brands, as these offer the healthiest margins.

Small animals can be big business, but many retailers prefer to concentrate on promoting low margin products for the larger cat and dog market. This is a mistake as premium small animal foods offer higher margins, so retailers are missing out on a potentially far more profitable area.

Sam Bailey
Proprietor, Aldwick Pets

Ipersonally feel that independents can benefit greatly by moving away from the traditional dog and cat sales, and concentrating more on the small animal side of the industry. Although perhaps not as substantial as the cat and dog market, the small furries sector does have an extensive customer base that is not always taken advantage of.

In our shop we specialise in rabbits and stock the wide range of foods and accessories to go with them. Rabbits and other small animals are no longer simply children’s pets, and people are becoming increasingly interested in their health and welfare. For this reason I find that a little specialist knowledge goes a long way for the independent retailer.

We breed our own rabbits and guineas, and all our bunnies leave us vaccinated, mite treated, and with a birth certificate and 30 days’ free insurance. We also offer services such as boarding and free claw clipping.
This level of service is appreciated by our customers who will often travel quite a distance to visit us.

Supermarkets tend to stock only a limited range of small animal products. By offering a selection of quality foods and accessories, backed up by sound advice and a friendly service, pet shops should have no problem in establishing good customer loyalty with little fear of competition.

This item is from the November 2009 issue of Pet Product Marketing magazine.