Thepastyearfoundpetownersspendingmoretimethaneverwiththeirpets,andamidstaglobalpandemicpreventivehealthinthehumanandpetspacesbecameafocus.
AneedbroughtintosharpfocusbyCOVID-19,supplementssuchasthisonebyVetriSciencethatfocusonpetbehaviorandcalmingarebecomingmorepopular.|CourtesyFoodScienceCorp.
Thesedemandstrackwellwithwhatpetownerslookforwhenthey’researchingforpreventivehealthortreatmentsolutionsinthepetfoodaisles—it’swellknownthatmanypetparentswilllookatnutritionasthefirstlineofdefensefortheirpet’shealth.Butpetfoodsaren’tnecessarilymeanttoaddressspecifichealthconcerns,astheirprimarypurposeisoverallbalancednutrition,sopetownersareincreasinglywillingtotakealookatadditionalofferingsinthesameplacethey’dgoforthemselves:thesupplementspace.
[Earth-animal-natural-remedy]
Unsurprisingly,educationisahugecomponentofthosedealinginpetsupplements,ensuringthatconsumersunderstandtheiroptionsandcanintelligentlychoosewhatmightberightfortheiranimal.
PureForm’sCanineandFelineEssentialssupplementsfocusonoverallanimalhealthandwellbeing,withmultiplebenefitsbuiltintoasingleformula.|CourtesyPureFormPetHealth
Allthatassumes,ofcourse,thatpetownersfindthemselvesinthesupplementspacetobeginwith.
“There’saneducationcomponenttopetparentsaroundwhatasupplementisandwhatitisn’t,”saidArchambault.“There’safairnumberoffunctionaltreatsouttherethathavereallylowlevelsofactives.Andthewaythatthepackagingworks,Ithinkit’shardfortheaverageconsumertodothemathandrealizehey,Iwouldhavetogivealotofthistoequalwhatisinarealsupplement.”
Sincetheconsumerbaseislargelythesame,thosewhomakesupplementsforpetsareworkingwithinmanyofthesamebigtrendshappeninginpetfoodrightnow.
“Ithinkwedoseeconsumerslookingformorenaturaloptions,lookingforsustainability,lookingforcleanproductlabels,lookingforcompaniesthatarecommittedtodoinggood,whetherthat’sintheworldorinthecommunity,withtheirsuppliersorwhatever,”saidArchambault.“Ithinkpetownersprojectthemselvesintowhattheybuyfortheirpets,sowhat’sgoingonintheirworldiswhattheyenduplookingintofortheirpets.”
Meetingthosetrendscanbeaseasyasenhancingsomethingthat’salreadythere.
“Ourformulahasalwaysbeenthesame,butwehavebeenhighlightingonourlabelsthatwehavenofillers,noflavors,nothingGMOandnosugars,”saidSaggu.“Ourcanistersarebiodegradableandthetopandbottomarealuminum,soyoucanhammerthemoffandrecyclethem.”PureFormisalsoresearchingwaystomaketheentiretyoftheirpackagingcompostable.“Reallywejustwanttostayoutofthelandfills,”saidSaggu.That’sdefinitelyatrendthatwejumpedon.”
Thebiggestchallenge(andopportunity)ofallisonemanyinthepetspacewillbefamiliarwith:loyalty.
“Helpingthepetparenttostickwithitandhavegoodcompliance[isimportant],”saidArchambault.“Becausesupplements,ifyoudon’ttakethem,theydon’twork.Keepingtheparticipationinthecategoryconsistentisabigopportunity.”