An Uptick in Clicks and Bricks for Pet Food: An Omnichannel Perspective

Like most sectors across the U.S. fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) industry, the pet care realm has been no stranger to dramatic change. As with the human food and beverage industries, product assortment and fulfillment options across the pet industry have exploded as consumers have shifted how they shop for their furry companions. And given the plethora of choice across the market (local pet stores, big box retailers, vet clinics, online retailers), as well as the pace of change across products and formats, it’s critical for brands and marketers to keep an omnichannel (1) perspective.
Across Nielsen’s omnichannel universe, Americans spent nearly $33 billion on pet food and treats in the last year. Compared with a year ago, this represents an increase of 5%, or $1.5 billion in sales (2). Although volume growth has been slow for the pet sector, pet consumables (food and treats) are still driving much-needed growth to the overall FMCG space, particularly in (where else?) the online retail landscape.
CONSUMERS HOLD OUT ON PET FOOD PURCHASES ONLINE
Relative to the 5% growth across online and offline pet consumables, e-commerce sales of pet consumables increased 53% this year.
The online growth figures alone might set alarm bells ringing for brick-and-mortar pet retailers, but consumers aren’t flat-out abandoning physical stores in favor of e-commerce. In fact, when it comes to shopping for Fido and Mittens, pet owners are pretty particular. According to Nielsen’s Digital Shopping Fundamentals research, one-in-two pet owners (51%) indicate that they don’t ever plan to shop for or purchase pet items online. Nielsen – Read more…