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In the first part of our
year-long pet store make-over, we meet a couple who
want to make their independent pet store more customer-friendly,
more modern and more competitive in a changing retail
marketplace.
By Karen Long MacLeod
 Voted
Kane County's best pet shop seven years in a row, Critters
Pet Shop in St. Charles, Ill., has enjoyed double-digit
sales increases throughout most of the last decade.
However, business in the past two years has been disappointing
for the store's owners, Mark and Caroline Janczak.
Annual sales began to slide in 1997,
about the same time PetsMart and Petco stores opened
in a new shopping district less than a mile away, according
to Mark. Critters' gross annual sales were $608,151
in 1996, $603,434 in 1997 and $590,190 in 1998. As of
mid-July, they were $294,001 Not surprisingly, Critters'
dog food sales took the biggest hit.
Critters' business is slowly eroding--and
the Janczaks realize they must act quickly to shore
it up.
That's why they wanted to redesign
their store as part of the PET AGE Pet Store Make-over
project.
 During
the next several months, Mark and Caroline will upgrade
their store to make it more customer-friendly, more
modern and more competitive in a changing retail marketplace
characterized by aggressive pet superstores, discount
chains and other nontraditional outlets, catalog operations
and even online pet stores. They'll undertake the project
with the help of two well-known industry consultants,
one prominent distributor/ wholesaler, 20 leading pet
supply manufacturers, the staff of PET AGE magazine--plus
a total budget of $60,500 and products valued at more
than $25,000.
PET AGE will chronicle the entire
redesign, from concept to conclusion. We'll show how
much money Mark and Caroline spend to upgrade their
store. We'll talk about what goes right and what goes
wrong. Ultimately, we'll show how all these changes
affect their business.
(Although this series will continue
for a full year, the Janczaks may complete the actual
renovation and remerchandising in less time.)
By making marketing and merchandising
principles come alive, we hope to show how you, too,
can upgrade your business to compete successfully in
the new century.
A Typical Pet Store
 Located
in one of Chicago's far western suburbs, Critters is
a fairly typical independent pet store owned and operated
by a husband-and-wife team. With 3,000 square feet of
selling space, Critters sells puppies, kittens, fish,
birds, small animals and reptiles, as well as supplies
for each category.
The Janczaks consider dogs and small
animals to be their specialties. However, most of their
sales actually come from fish and aquarium supplies.
Their next biggest department, in terms of sales, is
dogs and dog supplies.
The store carries an average inventory
of $60,000, and has monthly sales of $40,000 to
$50,000.
In addition to Mark and Caroline,
the store employs one full-time employee and up to six
part-time employees (mostly high school students).
An Ambitious Wish List
Going into this project, Mark and
Caroline had a lot of ideas for upgrading their store:
- Redesign the floor plan to improve
traffic flow and provide more flexible display space.
- Update the store's interior décor.
- Replace the dingy, damaged flooring
and ceiling tiles to brighten the sales area.
- Replace mismatched gondolas to
achieve a cleaner look.
- Reduce the size of the owner's
office to gain more sales space, and create a small
employee break area separate from the owner's office.
- Redo the fish room, incorporating
a central filtration system, a better saltwater system,
improved lighting, an aquatic plant display and a
large display tank.
- Improve livestock display areas,
incorporating an aviary, more secure reptile habitats,
moveable animal playpens and better ventilation.
- Install a pond with a fountain
or waterfall as a focal point.
- Install a glass-front freezer
for frozen foods.
- Install slat walls and shelves
up to the ceiling to maximize display space.
- Deepen inventories with fewer
SKUs.
Somewhere along the line, they'd
also like some advice about employee training and management.
 Mark
and Caroline have high hopes and lots of good ideas,
ranging from relatively simple changes to highly ambitious
objectives. They just don't know where to begin, or
which changes will help their business most.
Can they do everything on their list?
What compromises will they make? What creative solutions
will our consultants suggest? And how will Mark and
Caroline manage to investigate their options and make
decisions about their future while continuing to operate
their business?
Next month, we'll take a closer look
at Critters' strengths and weaknesses, and learn what
our consultants recommend. In our October issue, we'll
explain how the new floor plan addresses the Janczaks'
goals. PA
Karen Long MacLeod is editor in
chief of PET AGE.
Who's Doing What
The PET AGE Pet Store Make-over is
a unique collaborative project supported by a variety
of organizations and individuals representing all segments
of the pet industry:
- Twenty leading
manufacturers will provide working capital, products
and displays for resale or in-store use, and merchandising
support. (Learn about the sponsors in the accompanying
special advertising section, "Entering 2000:
Updating Your Pet Store," which begins on page
17.")
- Wilson Pet Supply
(Hanover Park, Ill.) will provide extensive support,
including product delivery and merchandising assistance.
- Simon Handelsman
of Out of Hand Inc. (Newburyport, Mass.) will analyze
Critters' financial records, help set objectives for
the make-over and advise the store's owners.
- Mike McCahill
of Retail Store Planning (Roseville, Calif.) will
prepare a complete design scheme, including a floor
plan and recommendations for fixtures and décor, and
advise the store's owners.
- Critters Pet
Shop Inc. (St. Charles, Ill.) will implement the consultants'
suggestions, hire and pay contractors, and arrange
for delivery of products, supplies and services not
provided by sponsors.
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