Type Public limited company Industry Retail Area served United Kingdom Revenue 729.1 million GBP (2015) Founded 1991 | Traded as LSE: PETS Founder Anthony Preston Headquarters Handforth, United Kingdom CEO Ian Kellett (4 Apr 2016–) | |
 | ||
Key people Tony Denunzio (Chairman)
Ian Kellet
(CEO) Stock price PETS (LON) 177.50 GBX -3.00 (-1.66%)29 Mar, 3:43 PM GMT+1 - Disclaimer Profiles | ||
Pets at Home is the United Kingdom's largest pet supplies retailer, with more than 370 stores and 6,000 employees. The company sells products including food, toys, bedding, medication and accessories and pets.
Contents
History
The first store was opened in Chester in 1991, by Anthony Preston. In December 1999, Pets at Home acquired Petsmart UK, bringing a chain of 140 stores under Pets at Home branding. In April 2004, Pets at Home was sold to Bridgepoint Capital for £230 million. The sale was completed in July 2004.
In November 2007, the 200th store, Barnstaple, opened. Pets at Home has also started global recognition with two stores opened in Melbourne, Australia. The two stores opened in Australia have since been taken over. On 27 January 2010, Pets at Home was sold by Bridgepoint Capital, to United States-based investment firm Kohlberg Kravis Roberts (KKR) for around £955 million.
The 17 September 2012 episode of BBC consumer affairs television programme Watchdog included a report on animal and fish welfare conditions at Pets at Home. The programme had visited eight stores, as part of an investigation which included Mike Jessop, former president of the Small Animal Veterinary Association. The programme discovered evidence of mistreatment of small animals, dead fish being left to rot and be eaten in tanks, and sick small animals up for sale. That month, Pets at Home subsequently issued a full response to the claims made in the broadcast.
In March 2014, the company was the subject of an Initial Public Offering.
Operations
The company's headquarters are located in Handforth, near Wilmslow, Cheshire. The company's main warehouse is located in Stoke and is roughly 160,000 m2. This warehouse supplies the majority of the business and has been expanded on numerous occasions. A second warehouse was opened in June 2011, close to the M1 Motorway near Northampton. It is roughly 28,000 m2, significantly smaller than the main warehouse.
The company works with 227 veterinary surgeons who practice from its stores and in 2015 there were a total of 338 veterinary practices in joint partnerships with the company. They are generally small businesses which pay a percentage of turnover as a management fee to the company for back office services. The company runs a graduate training scheme intended to produce future joint venture partners.
Vets4pets
Vets4Pets Ltd was a Guernsey based veterinary business which operated a national network of joint venture Partner veterinary practices focusing on treatment of small animals(domestic pets such as dogs, cats, rabbits etc.). The business was sold to the Companion Care Ltd arm of the Pets at Home Group in 2013.
The group company entered into a Joint Venture Partnership with one or more Veterinary Professionals (usually a veterinary surgeon or Veterinary Nurse) to open a new small animal practice in a predetermined location. The Practices were supported by two main Support Offices located in Guernsey and Nottingham which provide partners and their practices with full administrative support.
Vets4Pets operates practices under a system called the ‘Joint Venture Partnership’. This is similar to a franchise between Vets4Pets and the franchisee; however, Vets4Pets own shares in the franchisee business rather than just providing services under a franchise agreement.