Quote Originally Posted by jknudson View Post
Bingo! As much as I dislike selling dog and cat specialty items, as my focus is in aquatics and reptiles (of course) to make ends meat at the end of the day dogs and cats are going to be the backbone of the business.

I recently had my hours, at the aquatic shop in which I work, slashed in half. The business is just not there in such a niche specific business. You HAVE HAVE HAVE to make your capital work for you.

And unfortunately the big box stores have the market in their pocket because most people are lazy... they want a place they can buy crickets, fish for their aquarium, and cat or dog food. And with gas prices right now, you have to give people a reason to drive to your family owned shop VS. wal-mart, target, petco, petsmart.

I have the same feelings as Connie, the city in which I live reptiles are still a taboo pet, and people are SO conservative with their money. They'll spend that money on a ridiculous dog sweater because they treat it like a child, but won't shell out the money on "auxiliary" expenses. In order to make the type of shop I want work, I'll have to live in a different location.
Agree!

Cat and dog stuff is the main business for most petstores. My dads feedstore is one of them! They added the dog cat side to there store, and now they are pulling in 4-5 grand days! Which is pretty good for a small feed store.