“We set the trend”

The pet retailer has opened the first self-service pet store in ­Europe under its Super zoo brand in Týn nad Vltavou, approx. 150 km south of Prague. According to Plaček, customers will now be able to buy supplies and food for their pets 24 hours a day, 7 days a week – it will be possible to shop around the clock instead of during standard opening hours. Super zoo plans to open 24/7 self-service stores in other cities over time.

For Dušan Plaček, the owner and founder of the Plaček Group, the new concept underpins the position of Super zoo as market leader in the Czech pet supplies business. “At Super zoo we try hard to achieve the best customer experience. Next to assortment innovations, we focus on digitalisation and customer service as well. We set the trend in the pet supplies business,” he says. 

The Plaček Group is a family enterprise that has been active in the pet supplies business since 1986. It is one of the key players in the European pet supplies market, operating over 320 retail stores in the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Poland and Latvia and employing more than 2 500 staff. The wholesale channel distributes pet products to more than 1 000 customers in 20 countries. The group states its annual turnover at over 260 mio euros.

Super zoo 24/7 is another innovation that will be included in the list of services, such as the unpackaged sale of granules called nasyptesi, in-store grooming salons, in-store vet, fastest home delivery of purchases, Super zoo family loyalty programme and omnichannel sales with the click & collect service.

The payment service provider Mastercard cooperated in the implementation of the project. Michal Čarný, the CEO of Mastercard for the Czech Republic and Slovakia, says: “As a technology company, we are constantly trying to advance the entire payment and shopping process so that it is as comfortable, user-friendly, fast and, above all, safe as possible for the customers. I am very happy that we share a common vision with our partners and are gradually presenting the future of…