Pets at Home reaps benefit of pet ownership surge

Hands up, who got a dog in lockdown? Judging by the foot traffic around local parks at 7am and 6pm, it seems many people did.

Being stuck at home in 2020 and a large chunk of 2021 has seen many individuals seek a new furry addition to their family, and pet ownership has rocketed.

That’s clearly been a tailwind for Pets at Home, but like many pandemic-induced trends it seems inevitable that pet ownership momentum could ease as we move into life beyond Covid-19.

“Pets at Home has expanded its customer base during the pandemic and it now has a large opportunity to cross-sell services such as healthcare and pet grooming,” says Russ Mould at AJ Bell.

“The beauty of pets is that owners are generally willing to keep spending regularly on their four-legged friends, thereby creating the opportunity for Pets at Home to collect a constant stream of cash.

“With this tailwind firmly in place, Pets at Home must now embrace digital technology to make it easier for customers to manage their pet needs, and ultimately make it easier for them to spend more money.

“Competition in the pet supplies space is fierce, but Pets at Home seems to be doing all the right things such as investing to improve its infrastructure and technological capabilities, as well as crunching all the data it has on customers to sharpen its selling skills.”