|
 President’s Message Global Pet Expo Sets New Records as the Industry Continues to Boom By Andrew Messinger President, APPMA
The interactive Global Pet Expo website helped smooth everyone’s planning for the show. From booth assignment, to logistics, to travel planning, to show promotion and attendee registration, the website provides a great resource. And that was just the planning stage. The show itself had energy and excitement, providing a super venue at which our members could focus their marketing and sales efforts for the year. Everyone on APPMA’s and PIDA’s professional staffs contributed to the effort and should be applauded for the flawless execution of the best show ever. In addition to creating a wonderful environment for exposure of our members’ products, APPMA and PIDA wanted to create the atmosphere of a worldwide marketplace at the Global Pet Expo. The noticeable increase in foreign attendees proves that the whole world’s attention is on the U.S. market. We are fortunate that the U.S. market for pet products continues to grow. That uninterrupted record of regular historical growth has led to today’s amazing level of pet ownership- nearly 70 million U.S. households with pets, according to our new APPMA National Pet Owners Survey. Those who attended the Annual Breakfast heard Dr. Marty Becker discuss the joys and real benefits that come from the bond between people and pets. Therefore, it is no surprise that our industry continues to attract more interest from the financial community and from the media. You may have seen APPMA’s Chief Operating Officer, Bob Vetere, on ABC’s World News Tonight and CNN Financial News, or quoted in The Wall Street Journal and USA Today. Many of our members, as well as our retail partners, have benefited, directly and indirectly, from increased national media coverage of the pet business. Bob also spoke recently at the Bear Stearns Retail Investor Conference in New York about the pet industry and its positive outlook. While all of this interest in our industry has led to consolidation and, yes, anxiety among some of our members, the opportunities for smaller, entrepreneurial companies keep growing. More than 100 new APPMA members exhibited for the first time at this year’s Global Pet Expo. And, along with the growth of pet products among established retailers, many distributors report that the rate of new store openings by independent retailers is experiencing a resurgance as well. It is an exciting time to be in the pet business, filled with challenges and opportunities. I am honored to have been elected to serve as the President of APPMA at such a time. Please let me or anyone at APPMA headquarters know how the association can help you. Now, it’s time to start getting ready for San Diego! |
|
