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PetSmart underperforming

3K views 21 replies 13 participants last post by  agro 
#1 ·
#3 ·
I hear you...unfortunately it would just boost sales at PETCO I believe.

I am torn because I support small LFS but then again PetSmart provides jobs here.

Online sales seem to do just as much to outcompete family owned LFS's as PetSmart...it's a tough world for small fish stores.
 
#6 ·
Right.

I go to PetSmart all the time for my rabbit. Rabbit food, treats, toys and litter.

Also when you need something for your tank asap like say a net or some silicone or airline tubing, for me at least, PetSmart has those items for much cheaper than my LFS.
 
#7 ·
PetSmart has faced mounting investor pressure at a time when fierce competition from large retailers including Wal-Mart Stores Inc and Amazon is squeezing specialty stores.
Don't know about others here but the wallymart here while the do have an aquatics department they don't carry very much. Not only that no one is hired to speciffically care for this department, they are worse than PetSmart or Petco, at lest the ones I've seen.
 
#10 ·
To be fair, there have been more than a good number of LFS that had no clue as to what the heck they were doing and truly deserved to go out of business. Some still hang on today.

It should also be said that it isn't entirely the Petsmarts and Petco's that pushed the small LFS to the brink of extinction. You can thank the good Doctors who bought out the very first saltwater online livestock sellers. Anybody remember Etropicals or Flying Fish Express? And they've certainly seen enough competitors pop up over the last 10 years or so.

But I still think there's plenty of room in the hobby for the larger LFS to be successful. In the end, if you build a business model around knowledgeable service and volume-oriented pricing, there are still success stories out there. But the E-tailers and box stores make it impossible for the guy who really knows his stuff and has passion for the hobby to make a go of it in a five hundred square feet of retail space.
 
#11 ·
this is very well put! i couldn't add anymore this story.

on petcomart, i have been anti petco mart for a very long time, for mostly the same reasons as everyone else. but we have to remember these box stores barely pay above minimum wage, and the employees are expected to care for the fish, the gerbils, the birds, and any other live animal they have. they get a basic training of fish care, and care of all the other animals. then they spend their day dealing with some of the dumbest most poorly informed customers in the fish hobby. my girlfriend just recently got hired at a petsmart, and it turns out that a single person there even likes working in the fish area. they all hate it, because of the customers (and they spend about half their day constantly pulling dead fish).

we rag on the box stores for the fish dept. but they also have supplies for all of the other pet related hobbies out there, and people like me and my girlfriend who have lots of different pets it is nice to not spend the whole day driving around town trying to find food, toys and treats for all of our different pets.
 
#14 ·
BIG Box shops can defeat mom and pops purely on price alone but unfortunately those that run these shops either have very little clues on what hobbyists want or have very little control over their particular shops to do anything significant. They also are generally focused where as a LFS could adapt to target niches...

regardless, this is an economic issue where big players and small are affected...
 
#15 ·
Don't feel thats true as far as inventory.
At my local petco I am on a first name basis with the main "fish dude" and he can and will special order almost anything I want as they will do it for a serious hobbyist that they feel isn't a complete assclown that will just kill the fish / invertebrate.
Of course that sort of service isn't available to the average walk in customer in the box stores but that doesn't mean they can't or won't do it! Get to know your employees at the box stores before passing judgment.
Sometimes they are in the fish dept because they want to be there and are hobbyists themselves!
Sometimes all it takes is a few minutes of your time to visit with them and chat about the hobby or life or anything to let them feel valued.
After all, they are dealing with people just grunting orders like a fast food joint all day long.
 
#16 ·
All things considered, I still have a soft spot for Petsmart, because it was the only store I went to when I first started out in this hobby. I also feel that it's probably true for a good number of people here. I have since expanded my horizon, but I still frequent Petsmart to buy general supplies. They have some pretty good deals for a number of products, e.g. I bought a Fluval Spec V for $70, a pretty generous portion of DHG for $8, etc. Additionally, they have a RIDICULOUS return policy! I've been told by their employees on numerous occasions to purchase an item, try it out, and if I didn't like it I could just return it, no questions asked. For newbies such as myself, this saves us a lot of money and keeps us from accumulating a lot of unnecessary/inferior products and equipments.

As for LFS, the metro-atlanta area is a barren wasteland when it comes to freshwater aquariums. The few stores that we do have are sometimes even worse than the big box stores that everyone loves to harp on, and with a ridiculous price mark-up no less, e.g. $30 for a 15lbs bag of flourite, $4 for 1 RCS. I'd be more than happy to support LFS. However, to me, customer loyalty has to be earned and not just expected from. SOAPBOX RANT!!! haha
 
#19 ·
It's actually a very complicated thing, and there's SO many different sets of needs and experiences. My first fish purchase was at "Sally's Pet Shop". About 200 square feet of retail space run by a woman that didn't have a clue about fish OR birds. And that was 50 years ago. Yup folks that didn't have a clue have been out there for longer than that. And it's not like the Petsmarts drove them all out of business. You could see it all coming when the first email was sent and received. What the Petsmarts DID do to the LFS was take away the casual hobbyist. The folks that would take their kids there to buy a few neons a cory and some new plants. The die-hard hobbyists moved on to Saltwater or bought everything on the internet.

Like I said, some people who got pushed out of the LFS business got what they deserved; but lots deserved better.

Bump:
We buy our dog food at petsmart (cheaper than Walmart most of the time) but if it closed down completely I'd save a fortune, by the time we make it through the store I've spent a hundred plus
And that is the marketing study that created them. They grew out of the knowledge that the vast majority of folks that keep pets, keep more than one variety and would be drawn there out of convenience and price rather than any special expertise, knowledge, or variety of choice.
 
#20 ·
I worked in a petsmart while in high school, yea i was paid barely above minimum wage, but where else was I going to work? A fast food joint? At least when I visit a petsmart I get greeted and asked for help. Majority of LFS I go to Ill be there for 10 mins before somebody acknowledges me. But Ill shop at a Petsmart/petco or LFS before I order online. Even though its a big box store they still employ my neighbors living here in my city.
 
#21 ·
I feel like a LFS can survive if the ownership places significant emphasis on personal relationships and networking with the local hobbyist population. Old school LFS owners didn't adapt to new world marketing strategies, social media, etc. for instance, I was at a LFS today and the owner is in the process of expanding the fresh water section. I told him I would put the word out for him on TPT and other forums. He looked at me like I had a .... Growing out of my forehead. Come on dude, get connected to your customers. We're all online because there's nowhere else to go and share our passion. Come and get us.
 
#22 ·
Would depend on the LFS. Believe it's better to have an LFS who appease the entry level customers. Influence them to buy this and that, educate them on the well being of the animals.

Experienced hobbyist already know what they need, where to look for cheaper, and whats hot and new, they just need a source for their interest.
 
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