Planning on starting a niche pet supply shop...thoughts?

Hi everyone!

Just wanted some thoughts/input on a business I'm in the process of developing.

I'm planning on opening a dog/cat natural and organic supply shop providing only British products. It's taken many hours of product research, but I have a decent product list. I also have plenty of knowledge to offer as I have cared for both domestic and exotic animals for about 20 years.

A little background about me:
I grew up on a horse stables, working from the age of 8 and then went into work at various kennels and grooming salons until I became a zookeeper at 19 and have been doing that for the past 9 years (I'm 28 now). I've had various other jobs from exotic pet store manager to a seasonal fish cultist at a Salmon hatchery in Alaska in between zoo jobs. So, naturally, I have a lot of experience caring for animals. I have a Certification in Zoo Management, and will be getting a piece of paper stating I'm a qualified canine/feline nutritionist before I start my business as I know people will want to see such a qualification no matter my history.

I plan on starting with an online presence and eventually adding a High Street  presence where I can then build an ideal community business. I will have a supported charity, showcase local rescues, offer clinics on nutrition, training, etc. I would provide a grooming service as well, but the many years of physical labour have not been kind to me and my back does not agree with me grooming anymore! I would also like to provide low cost vaccination clinics on site but I'm unsure if this is allowed in the UK as I have not seen it here. I've even spoken to our staff vet at work and he hasn't heard of such a thing here either. Though it is quite popular in the US.

So, ideally, I want to eventually have a very niche, natural and organic shop that supports British business and I want to maintain a community vibe.

Any thoughts/suggestions are very welcome

There is a high end dog shop in the middle class area of Manchester I live in, it's doing very well and is very stylish.  I'm not s dog fan, but if you find the right area, it could be a success.

My only comment would be that if I were bringing my cat over at this stage, I would be anxious to find food suitable for his urinary tract condition.  I believe it is possible to get the Hill's C/D food in the UK but don't know if there would be an equivalent British product.
Good luck.

If you are going to start online, you need to have a strong online strategy or you'll never get off the ground. Pet care is a competitive field, and competition is fierce. You've got the unique selling point (assuming there are few if any others with the British sourced slant), which can be exploited by you for profit but it will take quite some work.

I'd suggest first meeting with a couple of SEO agencies before you do anything. SEO is search engine optimisation, which is the method used to make websites rank well on Google - allowing your customers to find you. Bottom line is that 60-70% of the people searching click on the first three results of Google results. You'll need to rank well to get business.

You'll need a clean, professional website that performs well (isn't slow, no down time, etc.), with good on page optimisation and a lot of good quality content that 's updated frequently. And don't forget the question of how you'll process online payments - that needs to be as secure as possible for customer trust.

Here's an article about how to pick a SEO agency, and I really recommend that you read this if you're serious about taking this step and starting online: http://www.searchenginejournal.com/choosing-an-seo-company-in-2013/62181/

http://econsultancy.com/uk/blog/61804-six-key-questions-to-ask-your-prospective-seo-agency

If you don't bother with SEO from before you even create the website, then honestly you shouldn't bother with trying to make a go online.

If you have any questions, just ask. I do this stuff for a living

Along with SEO I would suggest, given your strong background, that you begin - even now - establishing yourself as the "go to guy". Start up a blog & twitter that you will later fold into your website. Quality copy on serious issues. Once the site is up, have plenty of informative stuff on there because a lot of people like to research  before they buy and it adds a trust factor. 

Along with SEO I would suggest, given your strong background, that you begin - even now - establishing yourself as the "go to guy". Start up a blog & twitter that you will later fold into your website. Quality copy on serious issues. Once the site is up, have plenty of informative stuff on there because a lot of people like to research  before they buy and it adds a trust factor. 

I agree with this completely. Be sure to choose a user name on Twitter that you'll want to use for your business.

You could start a blog on WordPress and migrate it to your own domain when you're ready (which is great, because it is the unique content you'll website will need), but don't leave it on WordPress and then not redirect it to your own website when you have that set.

I'd suggest getting your own domain now, and then use WordPress under that domain name (easy to do), to get yourself started as the authoritative voice.

After the technical things that I mentioned in my earlier post, this is the single most important thing - good, quality content that's relevant. Building up your reputation as a voice of authority in the field is crucial, once you're beyond the basics of the technical.

Thanks everyone....this is great feedback! Please keep it coming

evilshell...I may call upon you in the future when I have further questions or get stumped if that would be ok?

Absolutely!!

There is a business in my area of Texas, Natural Pawz, that is doing this and quite successfully too.  They have a website, and I think they're up to 4 stores now.  It is owned by a Canadian couple who got into it after adopting a dog with a lot of allergies.

The blog would be a good idea.  Where I am in Texas, I'm established as one of the "go-to" people in my area when it comes to small-animal care.  As a matter of fact, a dog/cat rescuer e-mailed me last night, asking for tips on clipping guinea-pig nails, because someone had asked the question on Facebook.  I've also had to share a "recipe" for the pellet slurry used in syringe feeding, because Science Recovery in the UK is available only via vets.  

Non-GMO food is a big thing, so I think you could do this, with the proper introduction in the right markets.  For cats and dogs, grain-free seems to be catching on.  I have a friend who has to keep her rescued dog on a grain-free diet, and I've sometimes switched my cats to grain-free, when recalls of popular brands were widespread (the melamine scare).

To go with your organic theme, you might also keep a list of vets that practice integrated medicine on your website.  Chiropractors who help animals would also be good on that list too, if this is legal in the UK.  

Good luck!    

I think this is a really great idea and I wish you the best of luck! 

Here is my two cents about it, I am not knowledgeable by any means about websites or blogs or anything like that! But, from a potential customer's point of view, having spent the last couple of weeks going from site to blog to site to blog, searching for information on grain free/raw food diets for my cat and dog, I can say that if I came upon a blog or website that looked professional and well done, I would stop and read it and spend time wandering round it  I would not spend anytime at all on websites/blogs that looked, well, cheap! They could have been full of great info, but I couldn't be bothered to read any of it, if they couldn't be bothered to put some effort into their public presentation   

So now speaking from my recent experience, it is really a pain in the neck researching all of these different foods and diets and this is in the US, I am not looking forward to doing the same thing in the UK when I arrive this fall......
If there was a one stop place that I could go to, either online or a brick & mortar store to get advice & products that I could trust for my animals, I would definitely be a place I would patronize

I think I'll start working on setting up a blog and Twitter then! I suppose my lunch hour would be a great time to sit in a corner and come up with content. My colleagues (I'm a zookeeper) will be able to throw some good subjects at me.

I've written content for a wildlife conservation non-profit in the past, writing monthly 'species spotlights', so I should be able to accomplish this

Keep your eyes peeled for The Orange Pig! (My lovely little ruby Cavalier King Charles Spaniel who snores and snorts like a pig is the inspiration for the name!) 

What sort of blog topics would interest you all?

Well, since you ask 

At the moment I am all over the internet looking for info on grain free food for my cat & dog, considering doing the raw food diet when I move them to the UK, though, to be honest, I think it will be the cooked raw food diet for the spoiled little creatures! I don't think I can go all the way with raw food...  Oh and I also have been researching probiotics for them 
 Also, when I arrive with the two of them in tow in October, I will have to find a good vet and a groomer and have to figure out what to feed them too......  some advice on that would be helpful to get started in a new country

Haha, so there you go, hope you aren't sorry that you asked about topics! 

And I shall keep an eye out for The Orange Pig! 

I think I'll start working on setting up a blog and Twitter then! I suppose my lunch hour would be a great time to sit in a corner and come up with content. My colleagues (I'm a zookeeper) will be able to throw some good subjects at me.

I've written content for a wildlife conservation non-profit in the past, writing monthly 'species spotlights', so I should be able to accomplish this

Keep your eyes peeled for The Orange Pig! (My lovely little ruby Cavalier King Charles Spaniel who snores and snorts like a pig is the inspiration for the name!) 

While the names cute, you might want to make sure that other places don't have the same name. For instance, I just did a google on it and it seems that there is a kids clothing shop in the UK with the same name.

Keep your eyes peeled for The Orange Pig!

It's cute but it sounds as if you're selling pig food.