Abstract
Pet owners' desire to take better care of and interact more closely with their
pets has driven demand for pet care services to an all-time high, with 83% of
pet specialty store shoppers citing "more services" as their number-one trend
of interest. Also contributing to the surge in sales are the rising costs of
veterinary medicine; the ongoing expansion into the market of PetSmart and
PETCO; the competitive response of regional and independent market
participants; the entry into the field of new players; greatly expanded
options in grooming, boarding, and training; and pet owners' willingness to
spend heavily on health-oriented services that nurture their pets.
As a result, pet care services are the fastest-growth area of the overall pet
market, chalking up double-digit annual sales gains expected to continue for
the foreseeable future, driving the market past the $20 billion mark by 2010.
This fully updated Second Edition examines all major areas of the
market-Veterinary, Boarding, Grooming, Training, and Pet Sitting- providing
separate focus chapters for each while also comparing and contrasting
cross-market trends. Hot-button trends covered include:
- Consolidation of the veterinary field, with VCA Antech and Banfield now
collectively operating almost 900 animal hospitals nationwide.
- The growing emphasis on veterinary specialties and diagnostics.
- The growth of regional pet care chains like Best Friends and of
franchising outfits with national aspirations, such as daycare specialist Camp
Bow Wow/Digs! and training specialist Bark Busters.
- The emphasis on "one-stop pet care" by service providers in all areas, as
well as by pet specialty retailers.
- The surge in luxury boarding and doggie day care options.
- The addition of pet care services in retail shops, in which services
currently represent 10% of dollar volume but over 17% of profits.
Using data from a variety of sources including the Bureau of Labor Statistics'
most recent integrated Consumer Expenditure Survey and Simmons Market Research
Bureau's Fall 2005 adult consumer survey, the report also provides in-depth
demographic profiles of users of veterinary services and other pet care
services, and examines market-shaping trends in dog and cat ownership.
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