Member Article

Pet treat business invests £20,000 in digital offering to support independent trade

Huddersfield-based Sniffers Pet Care has invested £20,000 in its digital offering as part of a pledge to support the independent pet trade.

Sniffers distributes a wide range of products to around 700 pet care stores across the UK, from independent traders to household names such as Pets At Home.

Since the launch of its new website last week, enquiries are already up by 80%. The site, built by Applied Digital, offers a direct link for trade customers who can not only see stock levels in real time but can place their order online for the first time.

The company’s own brand of healthy treats, Buffalo Natural Dog Treats and the Bow Wow range for which Sniffers holds the exclusive UK distribution rights, both feature on the site.

The move, says director Simon Brown, will speed up and simplify the ordering process, which in turn supports customers in the trade.

“We want to support the independent trade and to make people’s lives easier,” said Simon. “The new site helps us get stock to our customers quicker and the first time, traders get a real time view of whatstock is available. We can also have a one-to-one conversation with stores about new ranges and products.

“We are really eager to support the independent trade in light of what is happening on the high street. Covid-19 has forced many to accelerate their digitisation and move to online selling. Stores with an out of town presence will be fine but those within shopping centres will struggle during this second lockdown. We want to do what we can to help these businesses survive by speeding up our part of the supply chain.”

Since Simon joined the business in 2017, turnover has increased by 25% year-on-year and reached a record £1.3m at the end of the financial year in September.

The team has expanded from three to seven over the past year with a further three roles set to be created across the next 12 months.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Kate Wobschall .