My husband and I once daydreamed about quitting our day jobs and opening a dog boarding facility. There was a perfect tract of open land near one of the area’s largest employers, and we knew it could work. Alas, someone else had the same idea first (nice place, too) and our doggie dreams went up in biscuit dust.
No doubt about it, pet services is a hot growth industry. Not only are smaller players opening facilities and finding no shortage of customers, the big dogs also see dollar signs. I was reminded of my dashed dream when I saw PetSmart’s news this week that its PetsHotel service would be a major growth driver for the company.
With the pet services market growing by a rate of 6%, PetSmart CEO Phil Francis said he wants to seize the opportunity. Pet services (grooming, training, boarding) account for about 10% of the company’s sales. PetSmart already has 70 PetsHotel centers in its stores with plans to open 240 by 2010. (The stately indoors-only facilities offer day camps and overnight boarding with amenities such as hypo-allergenic lambskin blankets, TVs, one-on-one playtime, and even a “Bone Booth” where you can talk to your dog over the phone. An online tour of the facilities describes the “relief room,” where pet guests can “go” in a park-like setting.) Rival PetCo also has entered the game with Doggie Day Camps at a handful of its stores.
With the lavish love and attention spent on pets these day, is it any surprise that WE: Womens Entertainment has started airing reality show Adventures in Doggie Daycare following life at the Seattle’s Downtown Dog Lounge?
Before you ask what will they think of next, I think I spotted it. Dog runners (dog walkers are so passe) like Running Paws and the Chicago Dog Runner are getting buzz.
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