After posting its 10th consecutive quarter of like-for-like growth, Pets at Home boss Peter Pritchard tells Retail Week how the business is holding off the onslaught of online rivals. 

At a time when countless retailers are facing the pain of ecommerce competitors such as Amazon biting chunks out of sales, Pets at Home is managing to keep online players on a tight leash.

The pet specialist recorded an 8.2% jump in retail like-for-likes during the 16 weeks to July 18, while total retail sales climbed 8.7% to £266.4m. Online sales soared 36% to £26m.

Bolstering its impressive figures was revenue from the in-store services it offers. During the quarter, 35.5% of the group’s £303.4m revenue came from a combination of its vet practices, pet grooming services, adoption centres and Tailster.com – a dog-walking service in which Pets at Home has taken a 19% stake.

With no sign of slowing down and a “very active pipeline” for more pet services to be added to its proposition, Pets at Home is fast developing an Amazon-proof model.

More than just stuff

Peter Pritchard

Boss Peter Pritchard has made Pets at Home Amazon-proof

The retailer’s boss Peter Pritchard insists the reason for its success is “very simple”.

“We are doing all the things that Amazon never could,” he explains. “Amazon is a formidable, brilliant retailer, but they sell stuff. What we do is we actually help you. We understand pet care is an experience and that’s where we really come into our own.

“I think for other retailers the challenge is if you’re waiting for people to come and buy stuff, you can do that in lots of ways these days.

“What we’re trying to do is focus on pet care and making it really easy to do all the things you need to do in one location, all joined up, using all the channels. We’re just making petcare really easy [for the customer],” Pritchard adds.

“You have to look after your customer. What do they want you to do for them? How can you be relevant? If services are part of that relevancy you’ve got to do it. For us, it was the most natural place to go because nobody else can do this apart from us.” 

And that includes the online goliath that is Amazon.

Reasons to visit stores

By offering a wealth of pet care services alongside thousands of products, Pritchard says Pets at Home is giving customers multiple reasons to visit its bricks-and-mortar locations.

“The key thing is that services can’t be done online and have to be done physically. Therefore, it creates a really important reason to go to our stores,” he says.

Those reasons to visit are having a halo effect on the amount customers spend in stores on products. Like-for-like retail sales through Pets at Home’s bricks-and-mortar channel were up 5% during the quarter, Pritchard says. He described the combination of products and services as a “virtuous circle” that the retailer’s stores are benefiting from.    

“We’re thinking about boarding and doggy daycare. There are lots of areas that customers have needs in”

Peter Pritchard, Pets at Home

And with three new ‘store of the future’ formats already opened this year – the latest of which, in Stratford-upon-Avon, launched today – the Pets at Home store experience is what helps “deliver the magic”.

The new concept plays host to its vet practices, RSPCA adoption centres, dog-grooming facilities, workshops and dog agility courses, and children’s animal education areas. The clutch of stores that feature those elements are already enjoying increased footfall and customer satisfaction scores.

Pritchard did not provide details around those gains but insisted they offered indicators that the format is resonating with customers.

Despite that success, Pritchard, far from resting on his laurels, has plenty more ideas around pet services that the retailer is yet to explore.

“We’re thinking about boarding and doggy daycare. There are lots of areas that customers have needs in,” Pritchard suggests. “We think there’s a role for us to play, either doing it ourselves or partnering with people who can do it really well.”

Amazon who?

Pritchard himself is pet-obsessed – just ask him about his beloved cats Oscar and Leo – and it is this first-hand understanding of the precious relationship between pet and owner that is helping to spark ideas and drive sales.

“We really understand that relationship with a pet and their owner and trust is the core of it. This is like your baby,” Pritchard says.

“You don’t leave your baby with anyone. You want somebody who’s trusted, checked, insured, responsible, and we really understand that responsibility that people place on us every day.”

The fact that members of Pets at Home’s VIP loyalty scheme are increasingly spending on both products and services – the number of members buying from both categories spiked 23% year on year – suggests the business is becoming increasingly entrusted with consumers’ furry friends.

With plans to roll out 15 more new store concepts in 2019 and another 40 next year, with the prospect of even more services being added to its arsenal, Pets at Home is shielding itself against the online onslaught by putting the needs of its customers at the heart of its strategy and focusing on the things that Amazon can’t do.

The retailer is living proof that you can teach an old dog new tricks.