Pet Product News - July 2016

1Moochie & Co., based in Worthington, Ohio, s a w o p p o r t u n i t y where others didn’t with mall-based pet stores.

“Its very difficult for us to draw people to the mall, but we can draw them to the store once they’re in the mall, and once they are in the store, we are very good at turning them into customers,” said Mike Dagne, who co-owned the store with Al Bell, when they were honored for merchandising in 2008.

Their keys to successful merchandising: “Don’t try to reinvent the wheel,” said Dagne. “Make sure everything looks nice. That’s what makes good merchandising.

“Whether you have six or 600 stores, you need to differentiate yourself,” Dagne continued. “Everybody should be able to articulate how they’re different and what makes them better than the competition. If you can do that, your business will be successful.”

2Four Your Paws Only in Con way, N. H., took home the Retailer of the Year prize in

2009. Brian Ahearn, who owns the store with his wife, Kathy, explained their success in a nutshell.

“From a business perspective
it’s pretty simple,” said Brian.
“You treat a customer well at the
beginning, and you will have
that customer for the rest of the
pet’s life.”
“We live and breathe our
store,” said Kathy. “We are very
well known in the community,
and people trust us because we
practice what we preach. We’re
constantly trying something dif-
ferent, and our customers appre-
ciate that.”

3Pattie Storms’ Well Bred in Chester, N.J., was early in offering high-quality human-grade treats. For Storms, it’s important that pet owners can come in and talk with people who understand them.

“I like to make it fun for cus-
tomers to be around people who
care and are interested,” she
said. “People like to have some
place to go where no one will
think they are crazy. They want
to be able to say that ‘My dog
doesn’t like the blue toy; he likes
the pink.’ I can say ‘Look around
you; I don’t think you’re crazy.
I mean, consider where you are
and who you are talking to!’”

4Best in Show on Cas- tro St. in San Francis- co was started by “Pick a cause that is near and dear to your heart and that you are passionate about,” said Shiu. “We wanted to help people affected by HIV/AIDS—the No. 1 issue in [our] community. Find what you’re passionate about and any nonprofit will welcome you with open arms.”

5Heidi Taiger, who founded Poochey Couture in Montreal, “For my customers, it’s not just about shopping, it’s a social event,” Taiger said. “We always gather as much information as we can about our clients— including email addresses.

“Having a business is a 24/7 job, but all the work you put into it—customers appreciate that,” she added.

6TailsSpin Pet Food & Accessories has re- mained heavily engaged with its community since opening its first store in Savannah, Ga., 10 years ago.

Since then, it has grown to three stores, all of which play a role in their respective communities.

“At the end of the day, we can’t exist by ourselves,” said Jeffrey Allen Manley, co-owner. “We don’t always know where these associations will lead, but so often, doors suddenly open.” “We want students to understand the responsibility of pet ownership,” said co-owner Jusak Yang Bernhard.

7Brad and Karin Logan owned three Petland franchise stores in Las Vegas when they won in 2009. For them, one of the keys to success was training employees for three main functions: store managers, pet counselors or animal care technicians.

“What we have tried to do is be very systematic about it,” Brad said. “We track our employees’ progress, award certifications and give people a sense of accomplishment.

“A lot of training is done during the course of the day,” he added. “One of the main jobs of our managers is to provide training on the floor. If they see someone do something that is not part of the system, they pull them aside and explain why we do things a certain way.”

8Katrina Boucher opened Cape Cod Dogin2005.Herchal- lenge—as well as the secret to her success—is that she has a local customer base and, in summer, a huge tourist clientele.

From May to September she kept the store open seven days a week and then scaled back to six days at Christmas. She also tweaks her inventory for the two different groups of shoppers.

“Our product line is a delicate balance between what tourists want and what locals need,” Boucher said. “In the summer,

we order more frequently and increase inventory of some items, such as the logo items, but keep inventory of other items the same. My business just keeps growing and growing,” she said.

9Pet Pantry Ware- house, which has five locations in Connecticut, sells a full range of pet supplies as well as fish and aquatic supplies. The business places an emphasis on healthful food choices, and that has meant training staff so that they can answer the many questions customers have.

“It’s really important to us that if one of our staff doesn’t have the answer they will find it,” said Joshua Roth, vice president.

But the education doesn’t stop with employees. Pet Pantry plans to create educational programs for pet owners—and their kids.

“Catering to family, and especially children, is a big belief for us,” said Ari Jacobson, vice president. “Down the road we are looking at presenting workshops