Springfield PetSmart among top performing US stores

PetSmart corporate officials confirmed Springfield’s Primrose Marketplace PetSmart was one of the top 10 performing stores among nearly 1,500 locations nationwide during the past year.

Company officials declined to disclose further details about the 3500 S. Glenstone Ave. store. PetSmart also operates a recently opened store at 2640 S. Campbell Ave.

“We are seeing a trend in humanization and 'premiumization' of pets, which is fueling the pet industry overall,” a PetSmart official wrote in an emailed statement. “Pet parents want to treat their pets as true members of the family.”

A private company, PetSmart has around $7 billion in annual revenue, according to Forbes.

The local PetSmart’s performance is on track with national trends.

The pet products industry has experienced steady growth of about 5 percent per year for the past few decades, according to American Pet Products Association data. U.S. pet industry sales were estimated at $62.8 billion for 2016 and $60.3 billion in 2015. That’s up from $17 billion in 1994. Industry experts are not expecting growth to slow down, particularly with a robust millennial market of pet owners set on pet pampering.

According to a PetFoodindustry.com article, nearly two-thirds of millennials are pet owners and among those who aren’t, 43 percent hope to have a pet in the future. Sixty-four percent of those surveyed said they are spending more on pet products this year than before. Also, 52 percent of millennials claim they would rather spend money on pet products than buy things for themselves, compared with 39 percent for older pet owners.

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