First Coast Pet

Posts Tagged ‘pet supply store’

New pet owners often wonder if shopping at a pet supply store is really necessary or if grocery store cat and dog supplies will suffice. There are some benefits to shopping for pet products from a specialty retailer, like PetCo or PetsMart. For instance, larger pet shops can carry 10,000 different products from a number of quality brands, whereas supermarkets carry just a handful of less expensive mainstream brands. Items like exotic pets, premium pet foods, organic/natural pet products, obedience classes and pet grooming can often be found at pet supply stores. However, on the downside, pet stores typically mark up pet food prices by 20 to 30 percent.

PetsMart is a top retailing pet supply store, with more than 1,107 outlets in 47 U.S. states and Canada. They also have 132 PetsHotels, or cat and dog boarding facilities. At their Doggie Day Camps, over 378,000 dogs are trained each year. The pet grooming facilities clean up 7.5 million dogs and cats each year, the 1,000 pet hospitals care for 3.5 million pets annually and the pet adoption services help 7,000 pets find new happy homes. As for pet care products, shoppers will peruse 13,000 unique items for birds, cats, dogs, small mammals, horses, reptiles, amphibians, arachnids and fish. Ongoing reward programs and promotions keep the store competitive and their pet supplies online site remains at the top.

PetCo began in 1965 as a mail-order veterinary supplies company with five employees (then called United Pharmaceutical Company/UPCO). Owner Walter Evans opened his first pet supply store in La Mesa, California in 1976 to sell higher quality veterinary supplies, food and pet products directly to consumers. During the eighties, under the PetCo moniker, the business began to expand from servicing ranchers, kennels and cat rescue centers to encompass a broader base. They acquired several smaller stores and expanded out of state to Oregon, Washington and Texas. Pet services like grooming salons were added in 1995 and their P.A.L.S. card incentives program launched in 1997, which is now up to over one million members.

No matter which pet supply store a consumer chooses, there are many available products and services. Another great thing about these stores is that they both have a “pets allowed” policy, so dogs and cats can walk right into the store to pick out their own favorite toys or treats. Some people may head online to find deeper discounts, better store hours and hassle-free shipping right to their front doors. Both PetCo and PetSmart offer convenient online shopping for their customers at www.petco.com and www.petsmart.com, respectively.