Industry Profile - There's a Trophy franchise in Pet Care!
We are a nation of adoring animal owners and latest information only proves this fact even further. In the UK there are more than 7 million pet dogs and 8 million cats – and this population is growing! Not surprisingly therefore, the Pet products and services sector is now w
orth over £4bn per year.
In itself, the Pet services industry present a proven, long-term, stable and profitable sector, but couple this with the increasing ‘cash-rich, time-poor’ situation, today’s owners use Pet services that may have been reserved for the rich and famous in past decades.
More recently, dog washing, grooming, holidaying and exercising services have become established within the franchise sector, but by far the most utilised of all services are those that are in the most essential Pet care areas – namely pet foods!
Science and technology has played an increasing part in providing balanced healthy diets to pets, (Trophy Pet Foods has a 'no testing' policy) and in 2003, ‘Complete’ dog food sales overtook sales of ‘wet’ dog foods for the first time, with year on year growth in this sector of 5%. ‘Complete’ cat foods have also grown too, by 12% over the last five years, according to Leisure Research Specialists Mintel.
One organisation has seen first hand, the growth in popularity of healthy food products and increasing use of flexible services for owners. Trophy Pet Foods was established in 1990 and offers a mobile pet food franchise delivering Trophy complete pet foods, treats and accessories to pet owners in an exclusive area. Sales and Marketing Director Sue Reid, explains why the Trophy Services have developed so successfully “We now have 156 franchisees covering 110 areas across the UK and sales of Trophy Premium foods is rising by 15% a year. People in the UK adore their pets and pet ownership continues to rise and there has been a dramatic swing from moist, wet foods in tins and pouches to complete foods that are healthier and nutritionally balanced.”
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These foods are sold in bulk and are concentrated, so on average Complete food is half the price compared to wet foods. We deliver the foods to our clients, so we save them even more money, and time, as well as being able to offer nutritional advice, caring service and other treats and assesories” continues Sue.
Such a service provides a compelling business proposition, and one that has franchise owners across the UK smiling as much as Trophy’s clients. Debbie Lowther, is one of Trophy’s newest franchisees, but she is already seeing how she can mix business with pleasure. “I have been at Trophy for a few months now and I am thoroughly enjoying it. I can plan out my day on my own terms and enjoy some quality time with my family, which had previously been lacking. The support I get from Head Office is always friendly, never too much trouble and the advice is invaluable. On the whole, this is probably the most enjoyable job I have had as I love to chat with like-minded people on a daily basis.”
Enjoyment is certainly key, as Sue indicates the sort of person who would suit running a Trophy Franchise “You must have the strength and self motivation it will take to be self employed and working for yourself and this means your family must be able to support you. Obviously you must be a passionate pet lover and preferably a pet owner too. Anyone can apply – from retail mangers to miners, insurance directors to farmers, ex military to housewife's. They have all become Trophy franchisees! You are never on your own, remember its a proven, tried and tested, workable system that you would be joining.”
So, how does an enjoyable business work out when it comes to 
commercial success? Sue explains “Its hard work and can, like all businesses, be frustrating at times but you are in charge of your future and will have pride in what you are doing. Importantly, there are good profit margins, lots of repeat business and relatively low overheads as you work from home and don’t need to employ staff. One of the biggest benefits is in cash flow. You take payment on delivery so don’t have bad debt to chase. You could break even after six months with around 100 customers and for example, 270 customers spending £24 every five weeks would generate around £65,000 of turnover and a healthy £20,000 profit!"
Its clear to see why Trophy Pet Foods has become such a successful opportunity and looks set to offer a very attractive franchise model that will provide long-term potential and success. To receive further information about this opportunity, click the Request Information button now.
