Why Pet Stores Are Among the Few Retail Businesses Growing in the Economic Downturn - Research Paper Example

Pet owners are purchasing more than sheer requirements when it comes to their pets. Actually, in accordance with the industry’s primary trade organization’s expenses statistics, they are ready to pay almost any cost for their pets (Dean, p. 4). The American Pet Products Association (APPA) recently published the comprehensive yearly evaluation of expenses statistics and information, which reveals overall spending within the pet industry increased by almost 7 percent from 46 billion USD in 2010 to a little more than 49 billion USD in 2011.
The pet industry carries on displaying resilience regardless of the economic downturn and APPA is even estimating a 6 percent rise in spending to go beyond 52 billion USD within the coming year. Health-care linked pet expenses carry on to reveal the maximum expansion within the pet industry with spending increasing by 9 percent growth from 2009. Pet owners are becoming a lot more responsive towards their pet’s wellbeing, generally being practical with respect to veterinarian care and utilizing specialty formula foods, supplements, in addition to advanced, and sometimes, expensive cure preferences to guarantee that their pet stays in good physical shape. Of all categories, veterinary care has the major projected intensification at 10 percent that would cause a likely 15 billion USD in spending during 2013. Pet service is an additional group that has witnessed continued as well as diversified development in reaction to the rising demands pet owners face on a daily basis (Boler & Fahey, p. 81).
The pet retail industry is a huge and quickly developing market. During the last ten years, the industry has seen an exceptional increase from 25 billion USD to more than 50 billion USD – that is more than Americans use on films, music, and video games collectively. During 2011, Americans used 51 billion USD on their pets, with an estimation of 51.90 billion USD in pet spending during 2013. This yearly expenditure is likely to reach 54 billion USD during the next two years.
That is an extremely incredible level of development keeping in view the country’s overall condition of an economic slump. A shocking 95 percent of pet owners used the equivalent or additional amount on their pets in the most recent financial depression phase. A number of pet owners are even skipping extravagance in their own life with the intention of ensuring that their pets are living in comfort. Economic professionals now broadly advertise the pet industry as actually invulnerable to financial downturns. Even from 2008 to 2010, years that witnessed almost every industry of America’s retail financial system collapse, pet expenditure was up by 12 percent.
In fact, the pet industry is the seventh biggest retail industry within America, surpassing the ornaments, sweets, toys, and hardware industries. In addition, following consumer electronics, pet care is the most rapidly expanding group within retailing, growing almost 7 percent each year. Evidently, consumer demand within the pet business is at an unprecedented high.
Particularly, with respect to the pet services field, dog training, as well as pet care spending, have raised from 6.2 billion USD to 7.1 billion USD during the last three years with key development now forecasted for the coming five years. As shown by recent research, Pet services are among the rapidly developing sectors within the pet industry, leaping 9 percent to 14 percent annually.