Page 16 - PET worldwide issue 04/2022

International Pet Conference

Meeting the leading

European pet retailers

How is the international pet supplies trade responding to the

current challenges facing it? Find out more at the International
Pet Conference in Bologna.

Anyone familiar with the Inter- navirus period. The company pressing ahead with expansion.
national Pet Conference will aims to combine products and The retailer intends to open more
know that scarcely any confer- services in a unique manner in than ten new stores this year,
ence in Europe hosts as many an ecosystem for all pet lovers with the main focus on France.
well-known representatives of in Europe. By way of newly de- 20 existing stores in Belgium
the leading pet supplies retail signed web pages and videos are to be modernised. One fo-
groups. This situation will not offering comprehensive advice, cal point for Tom & Co. during
have changed when the Inter- services available digitally or on the Covid-19 pandemic was the
national Pet Conference takes site such as Dr Fressnapf, Ac- wide-ranging e-commerce ac-
place again in Bologna on 11 tivet or a GPS tracker for dogs, tivity, about which he will talk in
and 12 October after a four-year and a variety of other services, Bologna. The crisis prompted the
gap caused by the pandemic. the company has succeeded in pet retailer to develop its digital
A lot has happened in the providing pet owners with an of- activities further and the effort
meantime. Take Fressnapf, for fering online and in store that is paid off, as Tom & Co. now offers
Fressnapf’s XXL store in Krefeld is example: Europe’s leading pet probably unmatched worldwide. both a click-and-collect service
considered a pilot store for the retail supplies chain invested heavily Heiko Bücker, the company’s with pick-up within 24 hours and
group. The company aims to open
further branches modelled on this in expansion and the technical senior vice president of product home delivery within 48 hours.
in the next few years. infrastructure during the coro- offer, will outline the transforma- Le Grelle stresses that the pet re-
tion process in the Fressnapf tailer is evolving towards an om-
Group to the audience at the In- nichannel environment, in which
ternational Pet Conference. His stores have a central role.
presentation will focus on the Pet Network International is
challenges that the retailer must another leading pet product
overcome in the difficult situa- company that will be appear-
tion prevailing at present with ing in Bologna. The company is
regard to assortment composi- owned by A&M Capital Europe
tion and category management. (AMCE), a private equity firm
The aspects of goods availability based in London which special-
and raw materials procurement ises in medium-sized European
will also be a central theme in companies. Pet Network Inter-
his talk. national’s headquarters are in
Thierry le Grelle will also Zagreb and the retailer has over
have plenty of interesting things 160 pet stores in Croatia, Slove-
to say. He is CEO of the Belgian nia, Serbia, Bulgaria and Roma-
pet retailer Tom & Co., which is nia. Another 100 stores are ex-

16 PET worldwide 4|2022

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