If you are a sucker for animals, and you have a knack for making your money multiply through entrepreneurship, then deciding to open a pet shop business, can be you stirring your life in the right direction. Now, we do know that just like any other business, starting this business needs a lot of planning. The idea is to know all that’s needed, such as how much it costs to start a pet shop, the right marketing strategy, and its likelihood of success.  Additionally, you should know the tips and schemes that will make your pet business brand reputable in your niche market and beyond. So, to assist you in your journey towards establishing that pet business right here is a guide you will need for making an income out of finned, feathered and furry creatures. 

How Lucrative Is A Pet Shop Business?  

To start off, the pet business sector is vast. How vast? We’re talking about a wide range of businesses under its umbrella, like pet shop business, pooper scooper service, pet sitting, dog daycare, dog walking service, and dog obedience training, to mention a few. 

While pet businesses are vast, pet shop businesses are however among the fastest rising businesses in the pet business sector. The average income of a medium-sized pet shop is $30,000, and if a pet shop is run by four people, it is likely to make $400,000 annually. Additionally, Forbes shared that 70 percent of Americans own a pet and among those pets, dogs form the majority. Flowing from that, a research conducted by American pets product association, revealed that about $72.13 billion was used by Americans to cater to their pets in 2018. 

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Judging from the above findings, it is evident that as the years go by, the pet business sector would continue to expand. This makes it perfect for individuals seeking to make a living from a pet business to find a place to fit in. Going on, while there are a lot of pet businesses, we consider a pet shop to be the center of them all. Imagine what will happen if there are no retail shops that offer animals, animal supplies and accessories for sale. How would those desirous of having an animal buddy cope? With no pets available on sale, other pet businesses would likely face a financial decline. 

That said, let’s take a broad look at the pet shop business and a few other pet businesses.

An Insight Into Some Of The Types Of Pet Business

•   Pet Shop Business:  

Starting a pet shop business, simply means you establishing a retail business, for the primary purpose of selling different animals to the public. Furthermore, pet shops also have on sale several pet supplies and accessories, like food, toys, leashes, treats, aquariums, cages, and cat litter. That said, if you successfully see your business through to the point of it being well-established, then you can expect a good level of financial stability. This is because, irrespective of the economic downturn, when people are tightening their budget, they still include sufficient funds for pet care and necessities. 

•   Pet Photography;  

What makes a pet photography business special is that in this day and age no one would turn down the opportunity of having great pictures of his or her pets? Who really can say no to an opportunity to capture beautiful moments with their furry, finned or feathered animals? The fact that the pictures are loved by lots of individuals, makes pet photography a great business. A pet photography business can be operated from a home-based studio or a pet shop. One of the necessities of running this business is that it has to be colorful and creative. So, to meet this necessity, pet photographers make use of pet costumes, pet videotaping services, and themed backdrops. 

•   Pet Sitting: 

While pets can undoubtedly be great for keeping their owners company, the truth is, they can’t be with their owners all day. Emergencies can occur that will temporarily separate pets from their owners. What’s more, there are air crafts that have a policy against having animals on board the plane. So, if a pet owner needs to travel urgently, and they can’t find good help around them to watch their pets. A pet sitter can step in to ensure those animals are well-taken care of until the return of their owners. 

•   Dog Obedience Training:  

Here’s one pet business that can make anyone a fortune. Why? Well, it’s because tons of dog owners prefer having dogs that understand instructions and are obedient, then dogs who just lay around without an understanding of what they are told to do or need to do. Having said that, a lot of items needed for the effective training of dogs can be purchased from pet shops. Some of such items are collar and harness, treats, and leashes. 

•   Pet Toys: 

In truth, a lot of people regard their pets as deserving of all the happiness in the world. To keep their animals entertained, they will purchase anything necessary. This includes pet toys. So, a ton of individuals makes a living from selling these toys. They either work as retailers of toys, or they analyze the quality of toys in the market and then manufacture new ones to exceed the quality of previously available ones. When such designing and manufacturing is done, they then give them out to wholesalers and create a marketing and advertising strategy that will bring them to the knowledge of their target audience. 

 

Advantages Of A Pet Shop Business. 

•   An Opportunity To Share the Love Of Animals. 

An advantage of owning a pet store is the fact that you have an opportunity every day to share your love for animals with people who feel the same way. You can connect with your customers on deep levels while discussing their purchase of animals, as well as animal-related products and services. 

 

•     Stability Irrespective Of the Economy. 

Following a report was done in October 2010, thirty-nine percent of U.S household were discovered to have a dog, while one-third of U.S households had a cat. What’s more, irrespective of the economy, pet shops experience a great deal of financial stability. This is due to the fact that despite the economic downturn, pet owners still include the feeding and maintenance of their animals when drafting their budgets. Pet stores benefit because the majority of the products and services needed to maintain pets are sold by them.

 

Disadvantages Of A Pet Shop Business: 

•   It Is Highly Regulated.  

Due to the fact that pet shop owners face the task of taking care of animals, they are most times required by law, to be licensed, before they can sell certain types of animals. Furthermore, the U.S Animal Welfare Act provides against the inhumane treatment of animals. This means that as a store owner, you will be answerable to the law, should any avoidable harm come to animals that are under your care. 

•   It Requires A Lot Of Financial Investment: 

A pet shop business is not exactly the cheapest pet business to start. You will need to purchase a store or lease a property that you would operate from. You will also need to have enough cash to purchase animals and several other animal-related products. This can run into tens of thousands of dollars.

 

Tips On Starting A Pet Shop Business.  

•   Test the Waters: 

Okay, so you’re probably hyped up about the idea of starting a pet store. However, before you go on to bring your dreams to life, you should test the waters. You can start volunteering at a pet store. It’s a great way to know if you are truly meant to do a related business. Furthermore, while volunteering, you should try to know a few characteristics of different pets. This would make it easy to earn the trust of clients, and you will be able to give them personalized service. Your clients would feel more comfortable purchasing a pet, a pet product or service, from you, instead of going to a competitors pet business with less knowledgeable sales attendants. 

•   Be Thoroughly Educated

You should understand that pets are not just animals that individuals put at home. These individuals sometimes take them as their kids. So, if you are going to venture into a pet store business, then you should do yourself a favor of being well-educated on all there is to know about pets. Such pet parents would rather go to a small pet business whose employees have an impressive knowledge of pets than go to a big pet business with employees that are in the dark concerning things that are pet related. 

 

•   Plan Your Finances: 

As a beginner in the pet store business,  you should have a clearly drawn Financial plan. Clearly spell out how much you would be using for the purchase of animals, the acquisition of a store, and products. Also, find out how much would handle your marketing and advertising strategies. According to research, $30,000 should be able to start you off comfortably. 

•   Uniquely Position Yourself In Your Market:  

 

Before you start developing the fear of PETCO, Walmart and other big pet stores, running you out of business, you should understand that while they are established, they still feel some pressure and encounter slowed growth from time to time. The key to overcoming the fear of these giants and establishing your business is by you uniquely positioning yourself in your target market. You can brand yourself as an expert on various types of pet foods, and you can offer the public pet-related products that are hard to come by. You should also have an impressive customer service. Trust us, if customers find it easy to have their inquiries answered, and if they discover that you have on sale things that they need, it won’t be long before your customer base starts expanding. 

 

•   Be Creative With Your Advertising And Marketing Strategies: 

As a start-up, it’s not expected for you to have the finances to sponsor huge advertising projects. However, while you may be limited in cash, you should be limitless in creativity and cleverness  So, what you can do in order to establish your business presence, is to explore inexpensive advertising and marketing platforms like email marketing, social media marketing, and your personal blog. 

 

Furthermore, take advantage of branding and theming. These are important aspects of advertising. By branding, we mean that you should give your business a name that would effortlessly stick to the minds of your target audience. Theming on its part means you should pick a unique color combination and image and associate it with your business. By doing this, the public would easily be able to tell your business apart from the tons of other pet stores out there. 

Summarily, running a pet shop business is not as difficult as it may appear. All that’s needed is having the right amount of money to start with, meeting legal requirements, and knowing the tips and tricks for outrunning your competitors. When this is done, the rewards will be incredible. 

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