Italian success story

Michele Foppiani's mission right from the outset was to create a supermarket chain in Italy that specialised exclusively in pet products, and he set about realising his vision purposefully. The first store opened in Alessandria in the province of Piedmont in 1998, followed by a further store in Chiaveri, Liguria, in the same year. 

The Genoa-based company now runs over 125 outlets scattered across ten Italian provinces. At the end of 2010 Arcaplanet was acquired by the London-based private equity firm Cognetas (Motion Equity Partners since 2012) for more than € 46 mio. At that point the chain operated 45 stores and employed 230 people. Prior to that its owner was another private equity firm, the investment fund Credem, which retained a minority holding following the sale. Arcaplanet's founder is still also working for the company.
Cognetas/Motion Equity Partners is a familiar player in the pet supplies sector: up to 2011 the investment company owned the water garden specialist Oase. Another of its companies up to 2014 was the Diana Group, which specialises in pet food ingredients.

Arcaplanet appears to be a success story. Reports in the Italian financial press suggest that the chain maintained its quest for growth even during the recession and has always experienced double-digit sales growth. This is due on the one hand to the company's dynamic market presence, but also to the closure of many small pet product businesses during the recession.
Most of the stores are situated in well-frequented shopping centres that are conveniently placed as far as transport facilities are concerned. This sets Arcaplanet apart from the many owner-operated pet stores in Italy that are based for the most part in city centres, where parking space is at a premium.

Until recently most Arcaplanet stores tended to have a retail area of between 400 and 500 m2, but now the chain also operates larger stores with an area of 1 000 m2. The range has been expanded accordingly and now comprises approx. 10 000 items. Store fittings have been modernised and customer sales support at the POS has been improved. The outlet in Milan, which opened at the start of the year and was the company's 120th store, is regarded as a model store. The company…