A dynamic sector

The leading Greek pet store chain Pet City opened two new outlets in Petroupoli and Nea Smirni. This brings the number of stores operated in Greece by the company, which employs over 320 people, to 26. The leading UK pet retail chain Pets at Home opened its 250th store after a £380 000 investment in an outlet at Trafford Park in Manchester. Pactiv Corporation, a leader in the consumer and food service packaging markets (“SlideRite”) announced that its stockholders had voted to approve the merger agreement providing for the acquisition of Pactiv by Reynolds Group Holdings Ltd. The Doskocil Manufacturing Company (trading as Petmate) was acquired by Wind Point Partners, a Chicago-based private equity firm. In spite of the takeover, Petmate will continue to manufacture under its previous company name. Radio Systems Corporation (RSC) began 2011 with the acquisition of Tracker Oy, a leading Finnish manufacturer of tracking products for picking up animals and tracking them. RSC also acquired the assets of Australian distributor Innotek Australia The US pet food manufacturer Del Monte reported net sales for the second quarter fiscal 2011 of $940.9 million compared to $958.9 million last year, a decrease of 5.3 per cent. Dig Pets, a distributor of speciality pet products from Palm Beach County, Florida, announced the takeover of Jolly Pets, a manufacturer of toys for dogs and zoo animals and treats for horses. The private equity firm Perusa acquired Flamingo, a leading Belgian accessories supplier. The investment fund had already signalled its interest in the pet supplies sector back in April 2009 with the purchase of Karlie Heimtierbedarf. Gus Halas was appointed by Central Garden & Pet Company as president and chief executive officer of the central operating companies with effect from 18 April. Petco and financial investor TPG confirmed to PET worldwide that they had acquired a 39 per cent share in the Australian pet supplies group Petbarn. The French speciality chain Gamm Vert increased sales in the first four months of the year by 15 per cent compared with 2010. Gamm Vert operates 895 local stores specialising in products for the garden and pets. H.H. Backer’s 23rd annual pet industry spring trade show in Atlantic City in the USA drew close to 6 000 registered buyers from 1 869 firms. These attendance figures were up 23 per cent compared with last year’s show. Sandra Zimmermann is the new European manager of the UK company Sure Flap, which specialises in…