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There’s Value in a Retailer-Veterinarian Relationship
You know you watch it; my wife never misses an episode. Everyone loves “The Incredible Dr. Pol,” and it’s impossible not to. The man is 75 years old, and he ventures into cow stables, takes off his shirt and pulls out stuck calves with freaking chains. Then, he calmly ventures back to his clinic and […]
A ‘Clean’ Priority: Presenting a Sanitized Store to Customers
By: Victor Phillpotts As pet stores quickly expand into offering services such as grooming salons, self-serve dog cleaning machines and even vet clinics, store cleanliness has become a priority to keep a safe, healthy image. Maintaining a clean perception of a shopping environment is always a challenge as higher foot and paw traffic are signs […]
What Not to Say to Your Customers
By: Amy Castro No matter how hard you try to prevent unhappy customers, there are always going to be times when customers are unhappy with a product or service. One of the most important things you can do as a business owner or manager is to ensure that you and your staff say the right […]
Independent Stores Can Run Circles Around Big Box Chains
It’s true that big box retailers have a buying advantage over independently owned pet stores. What they don’t have is the ability to offer tailored services for a specific market area or to quickly respond to changing circumstances. They also don’t have the ability to make decisions based on their customers’ needs. When a company […]
Retailers Should Take Notice of Millennials’ Love for Their Pets
Maybe it was when the term “fur babies” arrived on Earth. Pet lovers have always loved their pets—that’s a tautology, you understand— but it’s probably fair to say that millennials have in many ways taken that love to a whole new level. Maybe it’s the fact that they marry later or tend to show less […]
Building a Business Takes More than Just Luck
By Amy Reed It all started by walking a dog named Lucky. That was 2004—the year that my good friend Leslie Barron and I decided to leave our well-paying corporate jobs to open a dog walking business called Woofie’s. We earned $10 that first day. We had a passion for pups and knew how difficult […]
Carriers and Crates: Essential Pet Training Tools
Beyond a basic understanding of fundamental usage, many retailers are not as clear on how dog and cat trainers use crates and carriers. Armed with a bit more understanding, retailers can assist more customers in making the correct purchasing choices as well as help them use these products in a more effective fashion. One of […]
Boost Holiday Sales Numbers by Strategizing
What are you doing to make the most of the coming holiday gift-giving season? No matter what type of store you own, if you do nothing but business as usual, you will probably see an uptick in sales because of the multiple holidays during the October to December period, simply because the U.S. consumer is […]
Simplify Your Pet Grooming Business with These Tips
By Jeff Dickerson Any pet grooming business owner knows that juggling daily operations can be not only extremely challenging, but also rewarding. While there is no single way to eliminate the many obstacles of running a small business, here are a few tips and tricks to help out with a pet groomers’ busy day: Anticipate […]
The Importance of Hemp Safety Knowledge
The last thing you need as a pet retailer is to unknowingly sell someone a product that harms their pet. That seems so obvious it shouldn’t even need to be stated, but we’re living in an age when people can’t seem to agree with each other about the basic effects of chemicals that have been […]
Dive into Aquatic Experience
BY JACINTHE MOREAU, World Pet Association president “Immerse yourself” in the exciting underwater world of aquatics at Aquatic Experience 2018, taking place October 19-21, in Secaucus, New Jersey. A conference and trade show for specialty retailers and hobbyists alike, this must-attend event celebrates a passion and dedication to aquatic retailing and provides retailers unrivaled access [&hell[...]
Dog Days of Summer: A Busy Time of Year
Summer and early fall are among the busiest times of year for professional dog trainers. Dog owners frequently visualize what they’d like to do with their dogs during this season: wonderful hikes in nature, strolls on the beach, safely traveling with the family in their car, being safe around the swimming pool, etc. Then the […]
