Why don't the large chains of pet stores sell the high quality foods?

Question

Why don't the chains like Petsmart and Petco sell the high quality foods like Innova? Wouldn't it make more sense for these foods to be widely available rather than having to hunt them down in feed stores and buy them online? One would think people would be more likely to feed good high quality food if it was readily available in an easy to find location.. I know that for a long time I fed my dogs relatively crappy food just because I didn't know where to FIND better stuff. For me, buying online has never been an option.

I tend to like to believe that most people don't feed good food out of ignorance. Vets don't help this by recommending crap foods like Science Diet, Iams and Eukacrap.

Ask your vet for medical advice. Ask a nutritionist for food advice.

Sshorekennels: Currently I have no choice but to frequent the mom and pop store. I only know of one pet store and it's two towns over!

Stina: I've heard repeatedly that they carry various good quality foods (I think 3 or 4 total between the two stores). However, I've never seen them despite living in many different areas in 5 different states and being in the stores frequently (I use them for dog socialization spots). I've also heard a lot of other people say the same thing.. That they've heard about them but never seen these foods in stock in these stores.

Also, feed stores are different from the big chain stores. Feed stores are the ONLY place that you can find some of these foods.. Which is exactly what I was asking about. Why they are only/mostly found in the feed stores and mom and pop stores that you have to hunt for and not in the big chain stores.

Answer 1

I have basically four choices for buying dog food where I live. There's a small locally owned shop, and they will carry the better lines, such as Solid Gold, Innova, Timberwolf Oganics and Merrick. They don't stock Pedigree, Purina, etc., because they can't buy in the quantity needed to be competitive with the chains.

There is a chain store, which I think is probably a regional chain. They have the usual - Purina, Iams, etc., but they also stock Solid Gold, Innova, Natural Balance and Chicken Soup brands.

There is another privately owned store not too far awsy that sells Innova and a couple of other higher quality brands. The area Petsmart is supposed to sell Blue Buffalo, but I haven't actually seen it there. They may have one or two other top end foods.

I suspect the reason they don't sell them is because the majors can probably offer them better discounts and higher profit margins than the smaller players. Distribution can be an issue. Finally, the large companies can mount large advertising campaigns, so people recognize brands like Purina, Iams, Eukcanuba, etc. So unless someone has studied the issue, they may be more inclined to buy a brand they recognize. So I imagine the stores are going to concentrate on what they can turn the highest volume and profit margin, rather than devoting too much space and time to smaller selling brands. Sit in a pet store for a while and watch what people carry out with them - it's the big brands.

Personally, I'm glad they don't carry all the good stuff. It leaves a niche that the small owner/operator store can exploit. It's always nice to walk into a place where they know you on a more personal basis.

Answer 2

I wondered the same thing! And for a while...I was the same as you...I just kept feeding the crappy stuff, because I really had no idea where to find the good stuff. People on here even suggested feed stores...I checked, not there. I found ONE very small pet store in this entire city (and it is a large city,) that sells EVO.

I think it is kind of unfair that we want everyone to feed their dogs the best....yet it isn't offered where most pet owners shop. Oh well...big chains won't make money off of the good stuff, so I guess the best thing to do is just pass the info along.

Answer 3

The margins are not big enough. Quality foods contain quality ingredients, and they are expensive compared to the junk that goes in to mass marketed foods. Chains want to make a certain percentage of profit on each item, and they can't do it with the "good" stuff. If they were to try to make those margins on the really good foods, they would be prohibitively expensive (not many people would buy them). This is why the types of places where you CAN purchase good foods tend to be mom & pop pet supply stores, vets, and the like. These stores are more concerned about their reputation for offering quality than on making a certain amount of money per square foot of retail space. They are actually much more concerned about pet health and safety, as well as building long-term relationships with their customers.

Answer 4

I work at Petco and I feed Timberwolf Organics (no, we don't sell it). In my store, we have Solid Gold, Natural Balance, and just started carrying Blue Buffalo catfood. All of the local PetsMarts carry Blue's complete line.

When we started carrying the Solid Gold, we only carried some of their more popular drys (Wolf King, Wolf Cub, Hundchen Flocken, Hund Flocken) and their regular can food (not the tripe). It flew off the shelves so corporate expanded our offering so we now have pretty much everything Solid Gold makes. Natural Balance is another popular food along with some of our organic foods by Castor and Pollux. Nutro and Science Diet are pretty much neck and neck in sales.

On our corporate website I have seen Eagle Pack and Wysong.

I wish we didn't carry Dog and Puppy Chow, Cesars, and Beneful. I do sometimes educate customers on their food choices. I had a lady with a yorkie who said Cesars and Pedigree is what the breeder said. I showed her Nutro Max can puppy and got her switch (it's the same price as the Cesar, but a bigger can and better ingredients).

I think part of the reason some of your higher brands aren't carried in chain stores has less to do with the store not wanting it, but more to do with the ability of the manufacturer to produce it. Science Diet used to be an excellant food when it was only available at vet clinics, however, when it was sold to a big manufacturer they had to cut corners to keep up with demand (I recommend Purina One before I even recommend Science Diet). A lot of higher quality brands don't want to end up like Science Diet.

When I'm talking to people and tell them what I feed isn't even sold here, they are amazed. They aren't ready to shell out $55 for a 35 lb bag of Timberwolf either. They usually thank me for my information, grab a bag of Natural Balance or Solid Gold and head for the register.

Answer 5

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Answer 6

I work at Petsmart and the people that shop there pretty much know what they want to get. I haven't had any customers ask for Innova or any of the other better brand names. Nutro and Science Diet are really popular. Just like people, a lot prefer fast food to really healthy food (I know I do).

If you want the expensive stuff then you'll find it one way or another.

Answer 7

Stores like Petsmart do sell high quality pet foods. However if the brand you mention and prefer isn't carried...how about asking that it be carried? Some places if they know it will sell will order it. Just talk to the manager. Just be mindful too that some manufacturers choose not to have their products sold just anywhere, retailers sometimes have to have manufacturer approval to carry their goods.

Answer 8

Because the owners of the higher quality brands don't want them sold in the same places that sell the cheap stuff. Places like Petco are not known for selling high quality food and the people that shop there will usually not spend the extra money.

Answer 9

Alot of big pet store chains are not being either paid enough by the companies with high quality foods to advertise and sell or do not see the people who buy those items as a large enough target market to bring in the amount of money neccesary to keep it in stock.

Answer 10

I have never heard of this brand. My pets eat the brand that my vets recommend, but that brand isn't available either.

I guess it has to do with demand. If there isn't a high demand for these foods for some reason (probably cost to the average consumer), they don't want to invest the money in stocking their shelves with it.