Thinking about opening a pet store....yes, seriously!

I have to echo what some are saying about location. Especially for a small store, it's essential to be located in a place with a lot of foot traffic or a place with another animal-related attraction. For example, the Petsmart is near the dog park here. Proximity to a forest preserve, coffee shop, pedestrian walkway, or park is also convenient because people can walk there with their dogs. (I always like to have a destination when I do long walks, and we do often walk to the pet store or coffee shop that's a mile away even if we don't end up buying much, since it's a nice evening or afternoon walk for Buffy.) Look for places where you see a lot of people walking their dogs naturally.

It would be great to be near one or more training or agility-related places because you will get a lot of business, especially if you establish a relationship and special deals with that crowd. Don't think of everyone as competition; if you serve different niches you can refer people around. There are 2 holistic pet shops within a mile here and if one doesn't have what I want, then I can usually get it at the other. Also, I'm more likely to drive for a pet store if I can kill a few errands with one trip. One big-box pet store is near the mall, and the other is by the grocery store. The small ones are near coffee shops, smoothie shops, etc.

Fantastic! The biggest problem I'm having in my research is being able to build a reliable business plan. I can estimate expenses pretty well, but Gross Sales, Gross Margin are much, much harder.
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Talk to other pet store owners. Buy them coffee or just visit them during a slow time at work and talk. As a reporter I have found most people love to talk about what they do. (Especially if they own a pet shop. I don't think you go into that for the money.) Those kinds of long features were always my favorites to do. :smile2:
 
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romeosangiovese said:
Why is there a "thumbs down" icon next to this thread? I think setting up a pet store is a great idea! Promote adoptions and sell good quality tried and tested stuff to the caring pet owners.
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Gosh! Thanks for pointing it out! Hey, whoever put the thumbs down on this, can you please give a reason why?

I've spent hours on the internet today researching government census and statistical data. I've got about 100 pages of research to go through, but the biggest shocker is that on average in Canada, people spend more on pet care than they do on child care....! Shocking! And good for my business, methinks.

Off on vacation next week....I've printed off all the feedback from the forum and my research....I expect I'll being spending my time at the dock reading stat data as I get ready to start building my business plan.
 
One of the locations that I've scouted out is in a high end area of Ottawa (Alta Vista) which has a large Shoppers Drug Mart at an anchor tenant. The demographic for this area is very definitely upper income, baby boomers. And this mall actually has two vacancies (hmmmm....wonder why?)

I like the idea of cross-promoting with other "pet businesses". Marketing is everything. I also love the idea of offering seminars.

Since I'm leaning towards a franchise to begin, some of the ideas that you guys have provided me with may be difficult as they tend towards a standard "model". Franchising has pros and cons. Since I'm relatively new to retail, franchising is more attractive for that reason alone, but losing flexibility to drive out other product and service is the downside.

Again, I thank you all for your fantastic feedback. You guys are awesome. I've printed it all off and it is my vacation reading next week!
 
Another model of the store.
Our training facility has decent pet shop with clothing/ food/ treats/ few toys etc. Owner I believe is CPA and she travels during weekends to different trials. Depending on what kind of doggie people you will be trying to attract having some deals with training places might work out too, this club shop carries very good but pricey doggie treats which sell REALLY well, so you might check out if you will be able to set up with booth during some trials? pet shows?
 
corbinam said:
It has been there since Barb originally posted (I was the first one to see her post), so I think she must have clicked it by accident.
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Yep the thread icon can only be done by the person who starts the thread. I think because the title in the first post had a thumbs down then the icon ended up applying to the whole thread. I edited the first thread so hopefully that has fixed it. Definately not a thumbs down topic.
 
BarbV said:
Gosh! Thanks for pointing it out! Hey, whoever put the thumbs down on this, can you please give a reason why?

I've spent hours on the internet today researching government census and statistical data. I've got about 100 pages of research to go through, but the biggest shocker is that on average in Canada, people spend more on pet care than they do on child care....! Shocking! And good for my business, methinks.

Off on vacation next week....I've printed off all the feedback from the forum and my research....I expect I'll being spending my time at the dock reading stat data as I get ready to start building my business plan.
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You know, many couples with no kids (and ALL of my gay friends, lol) are double income earners who are more than able and willing to spend their disposable income on pets. The one thing to worry about the high end boutique stuff is that in a recession they are the first ones to be hit. However, the economy is on an upswing here and Ottawa is a big city... I LOVE the idea of a franchise for you, as I told you before I love Bark and Fitz and it is super popular here among that double income, more disposable incomes kind of crowd. They sell stuff that you just can't get at the other places and Christine the owner is definitely the one who made this store here what it is. Of course I don't know the confines of the contracts, but she is what made the store, I have NO doubt... What I know of you I have full confidence that this would be a perfect niche for you!!!
Good Luck!!!
 
Toffee's Mom said:
You know, many couples with no kids (and ALL of my gay friends, lol) are double income earners who are more than able and willing to spend their disposable income on pets. The one thing to worry about the high end boutique stuff is that in a recession they are the first ones to be hit. However, the economy is on an upswing here and Ottawa is a big city... I LOVE the idea of a franchise for you, as I told you before I love Bark and Fitz and it is super popular here among that double income, more disposable incomes kind of crowd. They sell stuff that you just can't get at the other places and Christine the owner is definitely the one who made this store here what it is. Of course I don't know the confines of the contracts, but she is what made the store, I have NO doubt... What I know of you I have full confidence that this would be a perfect niche for you!!!
Good Luck!!!
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I'm looking at 3 currently:

- Pet Value - general stock; but they've enhanced their line by including Caesar Milan products. My local Pet Value does a great job of "marketing" new lines....they cycle their food lines constantly to the front of the store. Just recently they were promoting NOW! and GO!. They also have trinkets next to the cash; and yes, I succombed to the $12 Sheltie key chain as I was waiting in line.

- Global Pet Foods seems to be more focussed on food. The one store I visited, I walked out of less than 10 minutes later. They carried my brand of Now! but not the flavour. The whole store was to cramped, it was annoying. I plan to visit another just to ensure it was not an anomoly.

- Bark & Fitz - I visited one store and loved the layout and concept. But perhaps too niche. Limited amount of pet food brands...they seemed to specialize in just a few, plus alot of high end gear.

In reality, I think people come to a pet store for food first....but you have to entice them to buy the high end margin stuff. Bark & Fitz did a great job in layout (the food was at the back) so you had to walk through all the fun stuff to get there.

Lots of thinking to do here....(and yes, I must think beyond dogs!)
 
BarbV said:
I'm looking at 3 currently:

- Pet Value - general stock; but they've enhanced their line by including Caesar Milan products. My local Pet Value does a great job of "marketing" new lines....they cycle their food lines constantly to the front of the store. Just recently they were promoting NOW! and GO!. They also have trinkets next to the cash; and yes, I succombed to the $12 Sheltie key chain as I was waiting in line.

- Global Pet Foods seems to be more focussed on food. The one store I visited, I walked out of less than 10 minutes later. They carried my brand of Now! but not the flavour. The whole store was to cramped, it was annoying. I plan to visit another just to ensure it was not an anomoly.

- Bark & Fitz - I visited one store and loved the layout and concept. But perhaps too niche. Limited amount of pet food brands...they seemed to specialize in just a few, plus alot of high end gear.

In reality, I think people come to a pet store for food first....but you have to entice them to buy the high end margin stuff. Bark & Fitz did a great job in layout (the food was at the back) so you had to walk through all the fun stuff to get there.

Lots of thinking to do here....(and yes, I must think beyond dogs!)
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I love Business Plans, I know I am crazy, lol. It gets me really excited, probably because it is like playing with money that's not mine :biggrin2::razz:

I can assure you both Global Pet food stores in Halifax are JUST like that, too.. if I get to it I take a pic for you, lol

For Bark and Fitz you would definitely have to know your market and targeted customer! A really good SWOT analysis would be needed there no doubts... I think the profit margin must be relatively high in order to offset the bigger risk and inventory costs!
 
You're copying me! I said that I was starting my own company first! :winkgrin:

Just teasing you, and in any case, my plans are on the back burner until a later date. I still hope to do it one day, its just not the right time now.

Good for you Barb! I looked into all three of the franchises that you mentioned and we have all three in my area.

Buying fru-fru things for my dogs isn't something I actively try to do, although I do like putting pink on the girls from time to time.

However I do LOVE going to places that sell unique products. So many of the pet stores out there, including Pet Value, Petsmart and Global to a degree, sell all the same toys, coats, collars and leashes (especially). I would love a pet store that sold its own line of items.

I buy my dog food at Global and LOVE it there. I love that they're dedicated to healthy dog food and pets. They do sell a couple of things that many other pet stores don't like a herbal flea/tick collar, Lebba III for teeth and tick removal products, but I would love to see them selling a line of leashes and collars, misc. dog accessories and grooming products that you can't buy everywhere else. I'd also love to see some novelty items for pet parents.

Personally, I'd like to see a store that is somewhere between Global and Bark and Fitz. One that is dedicated to pet health but that also sells some of the fun novelty thing for people and has its own unique line of products.

I'd also like to mention that the Bark and Fitz in my area is located near Old Niagara on the Lake, which is a BIG tourist attraction and in a very expensive community. I think a more fru-fru store like this would have to be situated in an ideal location such as this to be successful.

One other suggestion regarding location: You might consider looking for a vacancy near a veterinarian, park or dog park.
 
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