How to start an online pet store?
Are you selling pet supplies, pet products, and pets grooming products physically? Are you planning to start an online pet store business? Then you’re taking your business in the right direction because many people love to purchase pet products and supplies online.
According to GMInsights, the pet care market value was US $280 billion in 2022 and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 7% from 2023 to 2032.
Considering the above statistics, we can say that the online pet supply store market is going to observe tremendous growth in the next few years.
Moreover, having an online business like a website or mobile app has become a need of an hour. It’s an effective method to win the customer’s trust and also helps to build a brand for your business.
To sell pet products such as grooming or their food supplies online, you can either create a pet supermarket application or a pet supply store website or both and integrate with each other. You can integrate both the website and the app with each other.
Here, we will give you a complete guideline on how to start a pet supply shop online.
Without further ado, let’s get started:
8 Steps to Start an Online Pet Store
Now, we will go through the step-by-step process to start an online pet store efficiently.
1. Decide Pet Products to Sell Online
Before you develop your website which focuses on selling pet products online, you should first figure out all those items which you want to provide to your customers. There are lots of items that you can consider for selling pet supplies:
Here’s a list of items you can sell in terms of pet’s living:
- Beds
- Blankets and bedsheets
- Towels
- Travel crates
- Sofas and chairs
- Toys
- Collars
- Leashes
- Muzzles
- Shampoos & conditioners
- Brushes
- Deodorizers
- Hair removals and rollers
- Dematting tools
- Combs & Wipes
- Washing Devices
- Nail Cutters
- Moisturizers
- Supplements
- Vitamins
- Dental care products.
- Health powders
- Spray
- Nair care products
- Vet tablets
- Massage Oils
- Ear cleaning kits
“You can choose any niche (or more than one) from above and start your online pet supply store. Here’s a great example of refined categories for an online pet store business:”
After you have listed down all the products you want to sell, you can build an eCommerce website/app for your online pet supply store. But, before that, you need to carry out some essential steps given below.
Can’t Decide Products for Online Pet Store?
Our experts analyze your budget & goals and suggest reliable products you can sell in your pet store.
2. Find the Suppliers for Online Pet Store
Identifying the kind of items you want to sell on your online pet store and suppliers is highly essential other than the condition in which you are producing and selling stuff by yourself.
Moreover, it is imperative to choose more than one supplier for your online pet store to keep your business stable when a supplier breaks a bond with you or you are going through any other issues in your business.
3. Create a Business Plan for Pet Store
For deciding the pet store business plan, you can consider the things given below:
- What is your main goal behind starting an online pet supply store?
- Define to whom you are selling: Marketplace, B2B, or B2C.
- Conduct Market Analysis & Research.
- Carry out SWOT Analysis.
- Define your target audience.
- Define the features & functionalities of your online pet supply store.
4. Decide about Financial Stuff
To start an online pet supply store, you will require a particular amount of investment based on the business plan. Here, if you possess enough funds in savings or retirement, then you can invest in the online pet store business.
However, if you don’t possess enough funds, then you can apply for a loan at the bank.
Apart from this, you can reach out to the Small Business Administration for a loan at SBA.gov. For this, build an effective three-year sales forecast as you will require when you apply for the SBA loan.
5. Decide Your Shipping Partner
Before you develop your online store and launch it, you need to choose a shipping partner that delivers your products safely to consumers.
Suppose you are starting your online pet store business in the USA, you have some wonderful options.
Firstly, you have a United States post office that offers flat-rate shipping. Besides this, you have other options like FedEx, XPO, Postmates, etc.
If you are delivering your products overseas, you shouldn’t forget to look after the duty fees & other charges. Here, it would help if you verified things with the U.S. Postal Service.
6. Choose an Online Platform to Sell Pet Products
There are two common platforms to sell pet products online. Let us look at these platforms in detail.
Create Website or App from Scratch
One of the best ways to sell pet products online is to create a website or app. Various businesses outsource website or app development to a company. Hence, you should also hire an outsource development company.
The main question is where to find a website or app development company. For the same, you should check out B2B platforms like GoodFirms, Clutch, etc. You should also be familiar with the review & ratings, and portfolio of the company.
Before hiring a company, one of the questions that you might have is, what is the cost of building an online pet store? There is no fixed cost to develop a website or app for your business. It depends on complexity, features & functionalities, developer experience & location, development approach, etc.
Now, you should hire an outsource software development company based on your requirements & budgets. The company helps you mention all the features, goals, and the design of your online store. They would help you choose a suitable domain name & hosting as per your needs.
Create a Pet Store using eCommerce Platform
You can also develop an online pet store using SaaS platforms like BigCommerce, Shopify, etc. When you choose an eCommerce platform, you need to pay a subscription fee to access the platform. These platforms allow you to customize your store, integrate third-party apps, and more.
The main disadvantage of eCommerce platforms is limited design options, features, and it is not profitable in the long run.
7. Integrate a Secure Payment Gateway
One of the most essential things after launching your online pet supply store is to integrate a proper payment gateway to get paid for the products you sell from your store.
A simple yet effective option is to integrate PayPal, one of the most popular payment gateways worldwide.
Here, it’s highly imperative to include a payment gateway that has a better online presence and is trusted by users. Why? Because nobody likes to purchase from a platform that has an awkward name like John’s ABC cash.
Apart from this, you should integrate different payment gateways like debit/credit card, internet banking, and cryptocurrency because different users love to purchase through other options.
8. Create an Effective Marketing Plan
After launching your online pet supply store, your work is not over. You have to inform your audience that you have entered the pet industry and want to do business with them.
For this, you need to create a top-notch marketing plan. For marketing, you can choose to start with blogs, forums, and related sites for banners.
Apart from this, you can also carry out social media marketing of your online pet supply store regularly.
If you are not familiar with marketing, you can contact a digital marketing agency; they will create a proper marketing plan for your pet store and execute it effectively.
Wrapping it Up
Here, we conclude that to open an online pet supply store; you have to follow a lot of processes. It cannot be done by one person; you will need a professional team.
From this, we can say that there are certain activities required to build an online pet supply store. As soon as it is developed, then it just requires maintenance and marketing.
When compared against a physical store, the online store is better due to the various benefits attached to it. This includes cost reduction, worldwide reach, brand awareness and building, quick management of products, etc.
If you are planning to launch an online pet supply store, we would be happy to assist you from start to finish. Don’t wait and share your project details with us and we will get back to you soon.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. What are some latest online pet business statistics?
Here are several recent online pet business statistics:
- According to commonthreadco, the pet industry market size has reached $261 billion in 2021 from $245 billion in 2021. The market size is expected to reach $350 billion in 2027.
- As per PetfoodIndustry, 61% of pet owners in the US are ready to pay higher for foods that satisfy their pets’ dietary needs.
2. Is owning a pet store profitable?
Operating a pet store business online would be highly profitable because people of every age love to spend on their pets. Moreover, various owners decrease their basic standard of living prior to reducing the standard of living of their pets.
3. How much does it cost to start an online pet store?
The cost to start an online pet store starts from $10,000 and goes up to $30,000 or more. The difference in the cost depends on the platform, complexity, functionalities, developer experience & location, etc.
