The World Wide Pet Supply Association (Arcadia, Calif.) and Zentralverband Zoologischer Fachbetriebe e.V. (Langen, Germany) said in August that they would develop an international partnership to address problems faced by the global pet industry and to work cooperatively to enhance their respective trade shows.

WWPSA produces the SuperZoo trade shows and America’s Family Pet Expo. ZZF, through its Wirtschaftsgemeinschaft Zoologischer Fachbetriebe GmbH subsidiary, produces Interzoo and publishes ZZA magazine.

WWPSA and ZZF officials plan to hold their first meeting this fall, according to Doug Poindexter, executive vice president of WWPSA.

“The opportunity to develop this kind of working relationship is vital to the continued growth of our industry worldwide,” Poindexter said.

“This group could establish a basis for an intensive exchange of ideas about the international problems of the pet branch and the exhibition trade,” said Rolf-Dieter Gmeiner, chief executive officer for Zentralverband Zoologischer Fachbetriebe e.V.

“This will be a way for us to see what makes sense down the road,” Poindexter said in a telephone interview. “The world continues to change, and it’s important that we continue to look at ways we can change and develop partnerships around the world to stay on the cutting edge.” [October 2004 PET AGE]