Millennials are the largest demographic of pet owners today

What kind of impact are we seeing in the pet industry as a whole? The pet industry is quite literally growing larger by the day and with millennials now adopting a 'humanisation of pet's' attitude, it's no wonder this industry is booming. It is thought that around 35% of US pet owners are millennials and according to the American Pet Products Association, millennials are the largest demographic of pet owners. This means that a huge chunk of the pet industry audience is at an age between 23 and 38 for 2019. Social media, YouTube and camera phones all play a big part in the humanisation of pets. We are seeing a generation of people who treat their dogs, cats and many other animals as if they are a son or daughter. We are seeing a generation that have a real passion for pets and through social media such as Instagram, create a real personality for their pet. The pet industry has really cottoned on to the overwhelming devotion people have to their pets, and we can see this is both online and offline. Whilst online stores seemed to be a threat to the bricks and mortar pet stores, we have since found that a love of pets now extends to wanting to visit live animals at a pet store. A need to buy accessories, food, toys and clothing for pets means a trip to the pet store, followed by a browse of the live animals and maybe a few photos! Pet stores are now choosing to create a real retail theatre experience for customers, in order to keep them in the store for longer and increase the chances of them buying. A positive in store experience can certainly result in a higher amount of sales. We are seeing a generation of people who want to treat their pets and celebrate things such as Birthdays and Christmas with them, this means there is a demand for more pet accessories than ever before. We have now seen an even further, dramatic shift in the way we care for our pets, and this is something we explored in a previous article about the new Pets at Home Concept Store. To expand on this, the article brought forward the concept of a pet store that is interactive in the same way a Zoo or Animal Sanctuary is. The concept as a whole promotes the idea of a one stop shop for all pet products and services, this particular concept store includes a Grooming salon with Self Wash, a Veterinary Practice, an Aquatics Retail Display, Pet nutrition consultations with weigh-ins available, plus several selfie stations and a small animal village with exciting peeking points and tunnels. Not only does the millennial spike in pet ownership affect the product purchasing market, but it is also having a big effect on the veterinary industry. According to an article published by Healthy Pets, millennial pet owners are much more likely to use the vets for preventative measures than solely for treatment. This is putting more pressure on veterinary practices and as a result we have seen an increase in the amount of surgeries opening. More people with pets means more vets! Here at CASCO Pet, we are certainly feeling the difference and are moving forward with the times and inevitable developments within the industry. We have always been Pet Retail Experts but have recently expanded into Veterinary Clinical Housing,this demand for all thing's animal has stemmed from a number of factors but mostly, the increase in pets and pet owners themselves! We are in exciting times in the pet industry and we can't wait to see what future trends bring us!