voices
By B.C. HeNsCHeN
Icatch a lot of flak when I ask salespeople about the back- ground of their company
chairperson. I want to know as
much about that person as possible. Are they in it solely for the
money, or do they have a passion
for what they are selling?
Passion for product is what is
lost when big conglomerates buy
up the small guys. The history of
most pet food brands tells a sto-
ry. It usually involves a “mom
and pop” that worked very hard
to improve on what was being
offered at the time. They finally,
through much blood, sweat and
tears, get a great product devel-
oped and on the market. They
hire people who often share that
passion and help them get mar-
ket share for the product. Then
one of the big conglomerates no-
tices the company.
I used to throw around the
term “sellout” when talking
about a great product being sold
to one of the big conglomerates.
I’ve since learned that many
times “mom and pop” see selling
as a way to expand their product. The problem is that passion
is lost. The conglomerate and its
people will be excited to have a
new item to sell, but they won’t
have the same passion as those
who developed the product.
Eventually, the conglomerate
will buy another product, and
enthusiasm will switch to the
newest item.
There was a salesperson in
my store the other day who had
never met the chairperson of the
company he worked for! I met
the chairperson of that company
years ago at a special event, and
yet the salesperson trying to sell
me the product had never met
the leader of the company? That
is why passion gets lost.
Do you think that when you
sell your business the new owners will have the same passion
as you do? They will want the
business to succeed—very rarely
does somebody buy a business to
have it fail on purpose—but they
won’t have the same passion.
Daymond John was the key-
note speaker at SuperZoo in Las
Vegas in 2014, and one of the
things he said really resonated
with me: “If your passion is only
to make money, you’ll probably
end up doing something you
don’t like and never making
money. Money is a byproduct
and a tool; it’s not a purpose.”
John mentioned in his blog
about SuperZoo how much he en-
joyed meeting everyone and that
everyone was exhibiting the hall-
mark trait of a great entrepreneur:
They were doing what they loved!
Look at the products you sell
and find the ones that have passion behind them. Those are the
products you want to get behind
and support. Sure, they might
get sold to a conglomerate in
the future, but I have found that
there are always passionate people looking to get product on
our shelves.
B.C. HeNsCHeN, a certified pet care technician and an
accredited pet trainer, is a partner in PlatINum Paws,
a full-service pet salon and premium pet food store in
Carmel, Ind. His knowledge of the pet food industry
makes Platinum Paws the go-to store for pet owners
who want more for their pet than a bag off a shelf.
Passion for Product
When a product gets sold to a bigger business, often its new owners
just don’t have the same overwhelming enthusiasm as its creators.
I want to know as much about
that person as possible. are
they in it solely for the money,
or do they have a passion for
what they are selling? Passion
for product is what is lost
when big conglomerates buy
up the small guys.
S
HUT
TE
R
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2)
Why Big Business Loves Pets
By steve legrICe
Big numbers are guaranteed to get people’s attention. And $60.28 billion, which is
how much APPA says was spent
on pets in 2015, is definitely a big
number.
So no surprise it is drawing
attention—especially from people
outside the pet industry. Noses are
pressed against the shop window
and asking not “How Much Is
That Puppy?” but “How Do I get
a Piece of This Business?”
Global Pet Expo boasted 1,087
exhibitors and scattered among
them were nonpet companies vy-
ing to get their products into the
pet market because they realize
the strength of the category.
Canadian company Attitude,
maker of natural products for
humans, realized that pet owners
also would want its noncarcino-
genic products. RinseKit, a Cali-
fornia company that makes por-
table showers for outdoorsy types
saw that muddy dogs also could
use the company’s product.
Among the more than 6,000
buyers walking Global’s aisles
were many who were buyers for
housewares and hardware retailers who want to better serve their
pet-owning customers.
Private equity companies are
paying greater attention, too. Last
year’s takeover of PetSmart led by
private equity firm BC Partners
was for $8.7 billion—making it
one of the highest buyouts of the
year. The company, already reporting that profits far exceeded
forecasts, is paying a dividend of
$800 million to the new owners.
Meanwhile, another private equity company has paid $4.6 billion
for rival Petco.
Pet food also is drawing more
fans among investors. One article
in the newsletter Private Equi-
ty Analyst said: “Private equity
firms can’t seem to get enough of
pet product companies, making
them some of the darlings of an al-
ready popular segment, thanks to
steady, stable consumer demand
for their products, even during
challenging economic times.”
Blue Buffalo, which raised
$677 million when it went pub-
lic last July, blew past its $20
initial public offering price and
closed at $27.20—a one-day gain
of 36 percent.
But not all of that $60.28 billion
is finding its way to independent
pet retailers. That number includes
a significant amount spent on
grooming, dog walking, training
and boarding. Here too, the potential is being grasped by industry outsiders. Aaron Hirschorn,
for example, left his finance job
to launch DogVacay, described as
Airbnb for pets—raising $47 million in financing from investors.
Franchising opportunities also
are cropping up—especially in
grooming and day care. In just
the past few years, Dogtopia has
grown to 40 locations, with more
in development based on a fran-
chise model.
Further proof that the pet industry is in the public consciousness came on TV’s two entre-preneur-focused shows, “Shark
Tank” and “The Profit.” In March,
Wondercide Natural Products
drew attention from the “Shark
Tank” panel—especially Lori
Greiner, who made a $500,000
investment.
Marcus Lemonis of “The Prof-
it” backed a small Chicago-area
chain of stores, Bentley’s Corner
Barkery, to the tune of $1.7 mil-
lion and helped them acquire an-
other eight stores while bringing
much-needed professional retail-
ing and marketing advice.
The great news is that the
growth in pet spending looks set
to continue. While boomers are
now empty nesters spending lav-
ishly on pets, research firm GfK
says 35.2 percent of millennials
own a pet, making them the larg-
est group of pet owners in the U.S.
That puppy in the window is
starting to look as good as gold.
Pet industry spending
for 2015 hit $60.28
million, and growth is
likely to continue. At
35.2 percent, millennials are now the largest
group of pet owners in
the U.S.
