Pets at Home
| 170px | |
| Public limited company | |
| Traded as | LSE: PETS |
| Industry | Retail |
| Founded | 1991 |
| Founder | Anthony Preston |
| Headquarters | Handforth, England, United Kingdom |
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Area served
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United Kingdom |
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Key people
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| Products | Pet supplies |
| Revenue | £729.1 million (2015)[1] |
| £96.8 million (2015)[1] | |
| £72.2 million (2015)[1] | |
| Website | www.petsathome.com |
Pets at Home is the United Kingdom's largest pet supplies retailer, with more than 370 stores and 6,000 employees.[2] The company sells products including food, toys, bedding, medication and accessories and pets.
History
The first store was opened in Chester in 1991, by Anthony Preston.[3] In December 1999, Pets at Home acquired Petsmart UK,[4] bringing a chain of 140 stores under Pets at Home branding.[5] In April 2004, Pets at Home was sold to Bridgepoint Capital for £230 million. The sale was completed in July 2004.[6]
In November 2007, the 200th store, Barnstaple, opened.[7] Pets at Home has also started global recognition with two stores opened in Melbourne, Australia. The two stores opened in Australia have since been taken over. On 27 January 2010, Pets at Home was sold by Bridgepoint Capital, to United States-based investment firm Kohlberg Kravis Roberts (KKR) for around £955 million.[8]
The 17 September 2012 episode of BBC consumer affairs television programme Watchdog included a report on animal and fish welfare conditions at Pets at Home.[9] The programme had visited eight stores, as part of an investigation which included Mike Jessop, former president of the Small Animal Veterinary Association. The programme discovered evidence of mistreatment of small animals, dead fish being left to rot and be eaten in tanks, and sick small animals up for sale.[9][10] That month, Pets at Home subsequently issued a full response to the claims made in the broadcast.[11]
In March 2014, the company was the subject of an Initial Public Offering.[12]
In July 2015, Watchdog aired a follow-up report, again highlighting alleged shortcomings in the care of animals for sale, including footage of dead fish floating in tanks, rabbits being sold without promised health checks and staff offering disputed advice on the care of reptiles.
Operations
The company's headquarters are located in Handforth, near Wilmslow, Cheshire. The company's main warehouse is located in Stoke and is roughly 160,000 m2. This warehouse supplies the majority of the business and has been expanded on numerous occasions. A second warehouse was opened in June 2011, close to the M1 Motorway near Northampton. It is roughly 28,000 m2, significantly smaller than the main warehouse.
The company works with 227 veterinary surgeons who practice from its stores and in 2015 there were a total of 338 veterinary practices in joint partnerships with the company. They are generally small businesses which pay a percentage of turnover as a management fee to the company for back office services. The company runs a graduate training scheme intended to produce future joint venture partners.[13]
References
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