100 Million Pet Clients in Brazil

Yesterday's webinar discussing the world's second largest pet market was a window into this rapidly emerging giant.  Canada's Trade Commissioner in Brazil, Marcio Francesquine presented a synopsis of the market to our group of members, discussing the benefits and challenges of doing business there. Brazil offers many opportunities for Canadian exporters.  

Here is some of what we learned:

·         The Brazilian pet market is worth over 6.4 billion dollars US with food sales making up 91%of pet care products sold there in 2012.

·         Brazil is the 4th largest population in the world and Sao Paulo, the biggest city in Brazil has 4800 pet stores and 14 million pets.

·         50% of pet owners in this emerging market still give leftovers to their pet instead of buying pet food but the annual rate of growth for the industry continues to climb as pet popularity among the burgeoning middle class increases.

·         Brazil is indeed a highly regulated country with a lengthy paperwork process due to lack of administration staff and also because all paperwork need to be done in Portuguese. However, once a company enters the market it is also protected by these same regulations.

·         It is important to keep in mind, that due to the peculiarities of the Brazilian market, often times a partnership with a local manufacturers may present a better option to enter the market.

Familiar brands such as Royal Canin, Purina, Pedigree and Hill's Science Diet are all tapping this huge new sector. It will certainly be interesting to track the evolution in Brazil and see who the new players will be.  The full presentation is now available in the Member's section of the PIJAC Canada website.  The next conference call with Brazilian official and businesses is scheduled for the latter half of January.  Any interested parties can contact Roselyne Lévêque at tradeshows@pijaccanada.com for further details.

Victory for responsible pet store owner

Barry Lutzer of Niagara PetCorner in Welland Ontario is celebrating today as city council decided against banning the sale of dogs, cats and rabbits in the municipality.  Niagara Pet Corner is the only pet store in the city that offers pets to the community.  Council decided to regulate pet stores instead of a ban on sales.  Keith Burgess, PIJAC Canada Chairman also travelled to Welland to present to council and said that Mr. Lutzer is happy with the outcome as he is already following the requirements laid out by council. 

 With a 750 signature petition from his customers, and his veterinarian Dr. Donna Campbell by his side, Mr. Lutzer, outlined for council how he selects his sources, cares for his animals and why he is a reputable source for pets.  The Welland and District Humane Society thoroughly researched the issue and reported that they felt a regulatory bylaw would be more effective than a ban. 

“This is a fantastic example of a pet store owner getting out in front of the issue by directly engaging his customers, health care provider, trade association and local city council.”, say Burgess, “Transparency, conversation and collaboration are what helped all parties see their way clearly through to this decision.” 

Barry contacted PIJAC Canada earlier this year to discuss the potential bylaw change.   We provided Mr. Lutzer with the information he needed and immediately made contact with the city offering resources and connections with other municipalities who have addressed this issue.  Advocacy can be a grueling job but it’s one we thrive on as it gives us the opportunity to help our members, the animals in their care and also work with municipalities and animal agencies.  We tip our hats to Niagara Pet Corner for their dedication and speaking on behalf of reputable pet retailers.