World Pet Association Launches petLENS to Deliver Pet Industry Intelligence

World Pet Association (WPA) today announced petLENS, a new market intelligence initiative developed in partnership with BSM Partners.

The first report, petLENS Pulse, launches in September and gives the pet industry ongoing access to actionable consumer research, category insights and trends and pet expert analysis.

Many of the industry’s biggest decisions, from inventory and assortment to channel strategy and where to invest next, are still made on data that’s months out of date. Consumer behavior can shift well before that gap closes, leaving businesses reacting to trends instead of anticipating them. WPA, which has spent decades bringing the industry together through SUPERZOO and its other programs, created petLENS to keep the industry in the now and in the know.

“The pet industry doesn’t lack expertise. It lacks the ability to see around corners,” said Mike Karsting, Senior Vice President, World Pet Association. “Retailers, brands, distributors — every part of this industry is making decisions today based on where the market was months ago, not where it’s actually headed. petLENS gives this industry that forecasting ability year-round.”

petLENS is built on the largest continuous consumer research initiative in the pet industry, powered by BSM Partners: ongoing tracking and surveying of more than 75,000 pet owners, paired with expert interpretation from a team of data scientists, researchers, veterinarians and product scientists with decades of pet industry experience.

The research spans dogs and cats as well as birds, reptiles, small mammals and aquatic pets, species often underrepresented in pet industry research.

petLENS Pulse is a monthly index report structured around five core pillars: Sentiment and Ownership, Spending and Shopping Behavior, Category and Product, Discovery and Loyalty and Health and Wellness. It is designed to help retailers, brands and other industry stakeholders spot trends, flag risks and guide action, whether that means adjusting an order, resetting a shelf or catching a shift before it shows up in sales.

petLENS Spotlight provides a deeper analysis.  Each quarter brings a new slate of studies, each examining a specific product category or broader industry trend through consumer research, trend data and expert insights. Spotlight is designed to turn big-picture perspective into actionable guidance and growth strategy, helping a manufacturer decide what to develop, or a retailer understand what’s pulling shoppers into the category – and into their stores.

“Most research in this industry is a snapshot: a survey at one point, a sales report at another,” said Michael Johnson, Principal, Marketing, Insights and Innovation, BSM Partners. “petLENS never stops measuring because the consumer never stops evolving. We continuously study and track pet owners to understand their behaviors, needs, concerns and how we in the industry can better support their journeys. To do that, we need to know what’s happening now, not what happened years ago. That’s what this program is for.”

petLENS was introduced to the industry at SUPERZOO 2026. The first report, petLENS Pulse, will launch in September.