There’s one thing about pet food that every independent pet retailer knows. There’s a lot of great pet food on the market, and there’s a lot of affordable pet food on the market, but there’s not a lot of great, affordable food.
Around 20 years ago, it struck me that this was a problem. I love my customers, and I want them to be happy. It turns out that while they’re really into feeding their dogs’ nutritious food, they also like to be able to feed their children occasionally – and even themselves once in a while!
That’s why I made the decision to start a private label pet food for my customers. The goal was simple: a really great food – nutritious and delicious! – at a reasonable price. Now, I’m a sales guy, not a scientist. So I brought in some help. A world famous nutritionist created my first formula and was even kind enough to hook me up with a great manufacturer.
Fingers crossed, breath held, I wrote one of the biggest checks I ever wrote and Dave’s Pet Food was born. My customers loved the food! As the years went on, and I knew the market would support them, I added more formulas. Six years ago, we added canned food – talk about a home run! Things got really exciting when we added a grain-free cat food line. Sales just took off!
Why? I think it’s pretty simple. Dave’s is a top quality, healthy food at a very reasonable price. Just about every person who comes into my store wants to stick to a budget- and this is probably true for you, too! Understanding this helped me find the underserved portion of the quality pet food market, and now that we’ve found it, we’re doing the best we can to make everyone happy.
A frequent question is “How can your brand be as good as the other high quality foods when your prices are so much less?” Good question…here is the honest answer. I don’t have sales folks on the road, I don’t do lots of promotions, and I run a very low overhead operation. It’s just me…I am the sales guy, the marketing guy, the customer service guy…talk about a one man show! But that’s how I keep the retail prices so reasonable
It’s working out pretty well. As of today, Dave’s Pet Food is sold in more than 2,000 independent pet stores all across the USA, as well as many online sites. We’ve even been on the Home Shopping Network!! How cool is that???
