Why Petco Doesn't suck.

[mfeit]

This may sound controversial, but Petco, Petsmart and other large chain pet stores are around for a reason.

If there was a healthy well run network of independent pet stores, Petco would not exist. You may say that the chains ran them out of business. Well this is not entirely true. In most cases the independents truly did suck. You all have to think back to your local pet stores circa 1987. They were disgusting. The chains are simply filling a need. They are generally clean, bright and fairly pleasant to shop at.

I am the furhtest thing from a lover of anything coorperate. I like independent music and movies, and will gladly give my money (even if prices are higher) to mom and pop shops of any kind, if they are meeting my needs.

Just thought I'd throw this out there. Hating on Petco seems to be quite popular around here.

[mike]

i would have to agree with you, i am an entrepreneurship major and i have learned throughout my schooling that chain stores aren't necessarily killing off "mom and pop" businesses, in a lot cases the mom and pop stores are killing themselves. most of the time it is poor business planning, bad location or picking a store where the rent is too high for a new business, etc. and some times people just flat out don't know how to run a business and get into it thinking it's easier than it actually is. it's just easy to point the finger at chain stores.

here in the central valley i have seen dozens of pet stores come and go throughout my life, some have been decent stores and others were dumps from day one, it all depends, some business owners know their stuff when it comes to animals, they can tell you all you need to know about reptiles, or any other animal, unfortunately what they don't know is how to operate a business, and this is where the problems come into play.

a lot of people criticize stores like petsmart and petco saying they have unknowledgable employees, well believe me when i say this, independent stores for the most part are no better and employ equally unknowledgable sales people to operate their store with very little sense on the appropriate way to treat customers, i have come across this numerous times, i have traveled quite a bit and i make it a point to visit at least one (usually more) independent shops while i am in town just to look around, i enjoy it, and i would say i have been into about 75 to 100 independent stores, and i can honestly say for every 1 great store there is about 5+ bad ones, no joke.

i am totally willing to support local shops just like mfeit said, but they have to deserve my support, they have to earn it, i wont just give it to them. local shops have a huge markup, i realize that they have to do this in most cases in order to compete, but if they want me to spend more money to support them as opposed to buying at a chain or even better online, they need to give me a reason to do so.

i will say that i have dealt with some bad petcos and petsmarts before, poorly setup and cared for reptiles, completely oblivious employees, but in all fairness i have dealt with the exact same things at independent shops which is why when i see threads bashing chain stores i realize that while it certainly is easy to point the finger at the big bad chain stores supposedly destroying local businesses, some times you have to stop and see that the same problems exist in the mom and pop shops, and if you havent encountered any of these problems at local shops, consider yourself lucky.

[Mark Baumann]

Amen brotha! The big chains don't put well run independents out of business. I use to run an independent store in the San Diego area that had 2 Petcos and a Petsmart within 5 miles, one less than 1/2 mile away. We thrived because we specialized, knew our animals and products and ran a clean and friendly shop. Not all box stores are created equal. Corparate usually provides adequate info about the animals, including set up, but it is up to the individual store managment to use it and hire quality employees. If you see something not right let the managers know, in a friendly non-confrontational way, what is wrong and what can be done to rectify the problem. If you see something truely inhumane or causing the animals to die,contact your local humane society or A.S.P.C.A. And lastly if you don't like the way a place is doing business or treating its animals, don't go back. If you keep buying the animals to save them they just buy more. It sounds cruel but if the animals die its lost inventory and it doesn't pay to keep bringing them back in. Any way that is my opinion what's yours?

[mike]

I would agree with you as well, occasionally you see someone who actually states "....so I spoke to the manager and told them what could be done to improve it" in reference to whatever matter they are discussing. Bust most of the time it seems like people jet home, hop online, and make a thread saying "OMG PETCO OMG PETSMART EVERYONE IS STUPID DEAD ANIMALS OMG" and despite how many people may see that post, in all reality it isn't going to do a thing to improve the matter, all it is going to do is spark a debate online about why they may suck and why they may not.

Then people respond with "well did you tell an employee?" poster: "uhhh no" "well did you tell a manager?" "uhhh no". WELL THEN WHY DO YOU EXPECT CHANGE? if you see something wrong and you don't take action to improve it then you can actually blame yourself just as much as the employees, you can't have the attitude like "its not my job it's their job and they should handle it not me".

It would take maybe an extra 5 or 10 minutes out of your day to stop and talk it over with an employee or manager to help them better their store and care for their animals, and i don't know anyone that doesn't have 5 minutes they can spare, if you have time to stand in the pet shop and find things wrong, then you certainly have time to find an employee and let them know about the problem.

just my .02 cents as they say

[genevieve]

I don't think that the mom and pop stores are any better, I just don't think that the chains are that great for the most part, either.

I have worked there; I tried to change it from the inside. They have all sorts of policies in place that supposedly make for animal care. But either they are not enforced, or the people enforcing them do not do so properly. Or, even worse, the policies are directly detrimental to the health of the animals. In the end, they just want to sell the animals so the people buy the supplies and feeders there. The individual store sells so much in supplies that the animal losses are "acceptable".

I am also that pesty person that checks every time I am in there to socialize my dog and buy a 99 cent item if the herps are properly kept. And you can bet I complain when they aren't.

Genevieve

[mike]

Originally Posted by genevieve

And you can bet I complain when they aren't.

That's the difference, you take the time to do so. Other people are quick to complain and do absolutely nothing to help influence change. I think that it is very reponsible and very admirable that you take the time to help make a difference.

[Brian]

Well one benefit of the chains is now that you only have "one" policy you need to change. Instead of dealing with 500 different stores.

A con though is that they have cookiecutter rules in place. Like Cresties go into those enclosures that may be to hot for them, etc. These rules seem VERY hard to change.

I think that saying big chains don't run out the little shops is not completely accurate though. The only ones that I see that really survive are specilty stores (i.e. reptiles). Every general petstore near me as closed. An exception being two supply stores that I could argue for being a different specialty type.

[mike]

There is no 100% proof that the chain store ran them out of business, in Fresno alone we have 3 Petsmarts, a Petco, and a Pet Extreme and there is one independent store that has been open 65 years, one that has been open for probably close to 20 years, and two more that are easily pushing 10+ years a piece, I honestly believe that if the independent business is operated appropriately and designed to meet the needs of the customer and treats the customers with respect, they can easily compete with chain stores because most local residents like the idea of supporting local businesses. Now don't get me wrong, with those 5 businesses I discussed there are a couple dozen more that failed, which helps prove my point that if operated correctly, you can make it work.

A major problem with independent stores is that they catch trends too late or they simply don't provide the public with what they want. A problem I have noticed a lot is shops ordering specialty animals that are just too far out of the average customers price range and they end up sitting around the shop for months at a time. Shops that are open to the public in most cases cannot afford to offer specialty animals, or if they can, they shouldn't be a majority of their stock because they don't sell and they end up losing the store money. Another thing is the dry goods, too many independent stores get caught up in ordering too many random things that simply won't sell or again, specialty items that have such a huge markup that they don't sell. A lot of failing businesses fail because they are poorly operated. Businesses are not easy to run, it takes a lot of time and careful planning to make it work and personally I think the pet industry is one of the hardest industries to be in as an independent business.

Online businesses can be much easier for specialty reptiles because you simply don't have the same overhead, you don't have the rent of a storefront, you don't have the cost of merchandise and bills, you don't have the cost of possibly paying employees, most of the stock you sell is raised at home and websites are so cheap just about anyone can do it. It does take a lot of work to make a successful online business, but I think too many brick-and-mortar pet stores try to go the way of online businesses with the specialty animals and for the most part the customer base just isn't there to support them.

[Brian]

A chain store can support a failing store for years if need be. (Depending on how the chain is structured). A chain store can also use it's purchasing power to buy in bulk and get lower prices then any independent can.

I know there's not 100% proof, but there's rarely that for most things. I do find it suspicous due to timing and really doubt there were other significant factors.

Most people I've seen often go for the lowest price regardless of loyalty to a specific store. Well that and habit.

[mike]

Yea that's definitely true, chain stores can support other stores that aren't doing as well. The internet and chain stores do have an effect on the income of independent stores, I don't doubt that, but I do believe that if run properly independent stores can still succeed even with chain stores in competition.