Newshound, December 2021
Trade trends
We have been racking our brains to come up with an answer as to why our visitor trade was still going strong well into November, when in previous years it usually tailed off after the first week in September when the schools went back.
Yes the pandemic has had an effect as more people holidayed in the UK rather than abroad and we have not seen a lot of overseas visitors. That has been positive for us because UK visitors generally spend more money with us than overseas visitors.
We now believe, however, that it’s more to do with the growth of holiday rental accommodation, the Airbnb market. Families are booking Airbnb accommodation and a good number of them allow dogs. So we are getting more families with their dogs staying in the area and they are spending money, spoiling their pets while on holiday and long may it last.
Looking forward to next year if this trend continues we will need to identify any Airbnb management companies covering this area and make sure any welcome packs etc that they put out for their guests have our details in them, a task that will keep me busy over the winter months.
Rabbit ears
We’ve steered clear of selling any dog treats covered in hair such as cows ears or rabbit ears for two reasons. Firstly when we sold pet rabbits it seemed a bit macabre selling their ears but the main reason was people overwhelmingly were repulsed at any part of an animal that’s still got hairs on it, they just look too much like a bit of dead animal! However, a couple of months ago a new customer asked us to get hairy rabbit ears and since then they are selling away quite nicely, to the extent one person bought 40 in one go. To take this further we are now trying hairy lambs’ trotters.
Queuing
On the rare occasion our shop gets full of customers we do ask some to wait outside in order to observe good social distancing and in every instance, our customers are more than happy to wait. However, it gives me that little bit of incentive to get customers turned round as soon as possible – obviously without being pushy.
People may like waiting for half an hour outside their favourite chippie but not outside their favourite pet shop so much. There was one family that had been in for quite a while and I politely asked them if I could help them with anything only to be told they only came in to be nosey and get warm and they had no intention of actually buying anything.
Edible cards
In last month’s magazine, I saw an advert for a company selling edible cards for dogs and thought that’s a good idea. They are made from potato starch so no rawhide, which appears to be a bad thing in many dog owners’ eyes at the moment, so we thought we would give them a try. Two weeks later the cards and a stand appeared and I put a picture of it on social media. Two hours later another pet shop, nearly 100 miles away, from us did exactly the same. Great minds think alike!
Christmas stock
Well, our Christmas stock was out well before Halloween and is selling well. While there were a few comments about Christmas lines on display in early November they were still selling away quite well.
Cat flea drops
A customer came in looking to buy cat flea drops. They usually buy them from the vet but with Covid restrictions in place, it’s very difficult to even get into the vet surgery let alone buy anything so they’ve come to the pet shop. They have no idea what the product’s name is but I would know.
While mentioning vets we had to take the dog to the vet because he had a sore eye. The bill of £95 – £45 consultation fee and £45 just to walk in the door – will put a lot of people off going to the vet.
Dog Food
A customer came in looking for a wet dog food that we don’t stock. They didn’t know what it was called, they would know it if they saw it, but do we do it cheaper than the local Co-op?
