“The pet industry has great growth potential”

The US economy is still in difficulty. What effects did this have on the pet sector in 2011? The most recent APPA National Pet Owners Survey, released earlier this year, shows that the pet sector in the United States continues to grow steadily. The number of households that own a pet has increased by 2.1 per cent. In fact, 72.9 million households in the US currently have pets. Additionally, overall spending in the pet industry (including food, supplies/OTC medication, veterinary care, live animal purchases and other services such as grooming, boarding, and pet sitting) grew by 6.2 per cent from $45.53 billion in 2009 to a little over $48 billion in 2010. The pet industry continues to show resilience, despite the economic crisis, and APPA projects a 5.1 per cent increase in spending to exceed $50 billion in 2011. APPA also enjoyed an increase in its membership of 5.5 per cent in 2011. This, coupled with the biggest Global Pet Expo show to date (the 2011 show featured 835 exhibitors, 2 380 booths, more than 3 000 new product launches, and 4 691 pet product buyers from around the world in attendance), further demonstrates the strength of the pet industry. More than ever, we are hearing from new companies entering the segment that they believe the pet industry has great growth potential. The Global Pet Expo was more international than ever before last year. Will this trend continue this year? APPA international membership has grown significantly in the last few years. In 2010, 15 per cent of APPA members were from outside the US. Currently, 26 countries are represented in APPA’s manufacturer membership. Many international manufacturers join the association so they can exhibit at Global Pet Expo and have access to US and international buyers. International buyers make up 25 per cent of the show’s attendance and in 2011 the show had professional buyers from 65 countries. We project increased international exhibitor and buyer attendance for 2012. While most international exhibitors are spread throughout the exhibition hall, we will also have an International Pavilion featuring 40 international companies that are new to the show. What is the exhibitor response to the next Global Pet Expo like? Exhibitor response for Global Pet Expo 2012 has been very good. As of early December, there’s a 10 per cent increase in exhibitor participation. We expect the show to be 12-15 per cent larger than 2011, and that show broke all previous show records. The Natural Pet section…