A Swiss powerhouse

Qualipet started out with two magazines, a horse magazine and a cat magazine, which were published by Rolf Boffa. The magazines featured various products for sale, and the number of orders received was so overwhelming that the product range was increasingly extended. The next step was to publish a catalogue with over 180 pages that soon attained a circulation of over 100 000 copies.Rolf Boffa still hasn’t lost his nose for good business ideas. Qualipet currently operates 49 speciality pet stores throughout Switzerland, 23 of which feature a large equestrian sport department known by the name Quali-Horse. In June, the company’s 50th speciality store, with a retail area of 900 m2, is due to open in Glarus, while the catalogue circulation is now up to roughly 350 000 copies. Qualipet also produces other special catalogues for dogs, cats and horses.When Rolf Boffa opened his first branch of Qualipet in 1991 in Dietlikon, a small town between Winterthur and Zurich, the 1 250 m² store was virtually a sensation. Now covering a retail area of 2 500 m², the store not only continues to be the company’s flagship, but it is also one of the most attractive stores in Europe.Because pets constitute an important part of the range in the store, the company has its stores inspected regularly by Swiss Animal Protection SAP and the association of Swiss pet specialist stores, VZFS. Customers are thus assured that only pets that have been properly cared for, are not endangered species and are not subject to import bans can be bought at Qualipet. The company’s creativity and the virtually inexhaustible imaginativeness of its founder are the key to its existence. Rolf Boffa was probably the first retailer in the pet product sector to implement the concept known from other sectors of offering different suppliers their own shops in the store’s retail area. No less remarkable is the already legendary scratching tree house in several of the larger Qualipet stores, in which complex entire models are displayed as well as all the individual components in every possible material and colour. Another striking feature of Qualipet outlets is the high-quality presentation of pet-oriented gift articles that include everything from key fobs to pictures with animal motifs. And the agile Swiss pet supplies trader is also heading the sector with his drive-in dog crate centre in Dietlikon: pet owners can drive their car right up to the relevant department and find the right size of crate to fit…