Stay positive

Is the international pet industry in crisis? Or is crisis just around the corner? And if there is a crisis, how should it be assessed: just a minor temporary setback before things start to look up again soon? Or a profound crisis that will last for several years? It is difficult to find an answer to all these difficult questions. The future prospects of the pet industry were also discussed at the International Pet Conference in Brussels. There was agreement that the hype surrounding the pet industry during the Covid-19 pandemic has long since come to an end. Industrial and trading companies of the pet business that are still experiencing growth can only look forward to low single-digit sales increases. This is not really a cause for concern, because before the pandemic, growth rates were no higher in many years. If it weren’t for the fact that everything has become significantly more expensive in the meantime: raw materials, packaging materials, logistics, costs for new technologies and expenses for digital transformation. Not to mention the fact that personnel costs have also risen significantly for many companies in the pet industry. There are also many new regulations that weigh heavily on industry and trade and create new costs. Higher expenses, stagnating revenues, the bottom line is a negative result.

The nervousness that is currently also prevailing in the economy is reflected in the pet industry in a sharp increase in takeovers and the desire of many companies to survive the next few years alongside a strong partner. There is nothing wrong with that; in many cases, alliances make perfect sense. However, it would be important not to lose optimism and faith in a better future, despite all the justified concerns about the current economic situation.

At the International Pet Conference, several presentations showed that pet ownership will remain in demand among many people around the world in the years to come. A large proportion of them want the pets they own to stay healthy and live a long life. They are willing to spend a lot of money on this now and in the future – even if it means going without themselves. Let’s not fool ourselves: the opportunities and potential for the pet industry are unanimously rated as excellent by industry experts, analysts and futurologists. This should not be forgotten in the discussion…