If you thought only pet owners in India were struggling to cope with constantly rising costs of pet food, care products, and services, think again. A survey report in the USA suggests the pet industry in the USA, currently the world’s largest, is at an inflection point due to macroeconomic and industry-specific factors, and providing value to pet owners has come to the fore as a competitive strategy.
Packaged Facts, based in Rockville, Maryland, provides consumer market research on food and beverages, pet products and services, demographics, and financial services. Last week it released its U.S. Pet Market Outlook 2024-2025. According to the report, data from the Packaged Facts January 2024 Survey of Pet Owners show that nearly a third of pet owners have had their ability to buy non-essentials affected negatively by the economic environment, and three-fourths are on the lookout for lower prices, special offers, and sales.
Packaged Facts is a brand of The Freedonia Group, a division of MarketResearch.com, a premier international business research company, providing clients with product analyses, market forecasts, industry trends, and market share information.
“The promise of money savings and added value is possibly the oldest promotional manoeuvre,” report analyst David Lummis said, “but with the economic trauma of the pandemic and its aftermaths still rippling through, there may be no better time to focus on value to attract shoppers and engender customer loyalty.”
The National Retail Federation in the USA predicts slower consumer spending growth in 2024 owing to tighter credit conditions, higher borrowing costs, a cooling labour market, and political uncertainty. While fuel prices have come down and inflation has been moderating, it seems likely that inflation won’t cool any further until 2025, the report said. Last but not the least, in an industry for which dog spending accounts for two-thirds of sales, dog population growth is flat at best.
At the same time, the health of pets is too high a priority for pet owners to simply lower standards, the report noted. Packaged Facts data cited in the report show that product quality (71%) tops the list of what’s “especially important” to shoppers in pet care spending choices, and that “good value for prices” (60%) edges out both convenience in shopping/buying (51%) and low-priced products (43%).
In the short term, the foremost opportunity for pet industry marketers, manufacturers, retailers, and service providers will be to help pet owners navigate challenging economic times by offering lower-priced products (including store brands), products and services designed to facilitate do-it-yourself pet care, pet insurance, and other wellness plans designed to make veterinary and pet care more affordable, besides flexible payment options that are easy on monthly budgets and consumer credit scores.
Source: PR Newswire
