Open a pet food store and for that you will need to prepare yourself for the fierce competition that you will face from other pet food stores in the market. Ideally, pet food and treats stores can generate a lot of revenue because the demand of pet foods by the parents of the fur children is ever increasing.
This however poses a significant challenge for you: to find a niche. You will have to make a distinct mark and specialize in either:
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Providing all-natural or human grade food products.
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Specialty foods for pets with kidney problems and diabetes.
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Raw food diet.
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A wide assortment of it.
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Offer low price.
You may even stock food for livestock, birds, and even exotic animals like snakes and others. You can team up with bakers who specialize in making dog biscuits and other tasty treats and even stock additional pet related products such as leashes and collars for dogs. All these will make your store as one of the leading pet food stores in the region.
However, the extent and variety offered will largely depend on how much you can afford to spend on your inventory, how much storing capacity you have to stash the products until they are shipped out and your logistics. If that is too much asked for you, you can keep it simple by specializing in one type of product.
Get your store on top
No matter whichever way you want to set up your pet food store, it is elementary that you will need to place your store on top of the other pet food stores. According to the industry analysts it is predicted that the growth of this business will continue to be at the rate of 10% every year! Therefore, expect a highly competitive market and prices down the road.
This means that you will need to look over and beyond selling food, treats and toys merely. Here are a few ideas that will keep your customers coming back to your store. These will build trust and loyalty among the customers and at the same time provide them with a one-of-a-kind shopping experience unlike other pet food stores.
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Focus on the brands that you stock in your store and make careful selection so that your customers rely on you when they look for high quality food.
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Make sure that the food is made under proper quality control measures so that these are not dangerous for the pets.
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Train your employees continuously on all the products you sell so that they know the right answers to the questions that your customers may come up with.
Also focus on implementing loyalty programs that will allow your customers to collect points and perks. This will bring them back to your store. Create a community and add extra services so that your store becomes the go-to place for the animal lovers.
Pet food trends
You must come out of the traditional concept followed by most of the pet food stores to stay on top in 2020. Follow the trends on pet foods and stock these in your store. The pet owners now shop for pet foods that reflect their personal food beliefs, needs and philosophy. They now look for unique foods that:
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Are little fruity
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Contain alternative proteins and
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Comes with a variety of healthy options.
They will even spend a few extra dollars on pet food stores provided they get the assurance of the highest quality. Therefore, make sure that the food has a clean label that mentions all the healthy ingredients and processes so that it meets the expectations of the shoppers.
