How To Build & Start A Shopify Pets Store?

These days, pet owners are spending more on their beloved animals, making the pet industry a prime opportunity for entrepreneurs. If you've been looking for a rewarding dog business idea, learning how to build and start a Shopify pets store could be your next big move.

By the end of this article, you’ll have a clear plan of action and know exactly what to sell online to attract pet lovers and grow a thriving business.

Why to start a Shopify pets store?

As per my latest research, there are approximately 42,375 active Shopify stores in the Pets & Animals category, with 67.4% offering pet food and supplies, 36.8% focusing on dog products, and 7.9% specializing in cat products. The majority of these stores are based in the United States (48.8%), followed by the United Kingdom (12.0%) and Australia (9.1%). Additionally, 43.9% of these stores utilize Instagram for marketing, while 34.4% use Facebook.

From the statistics above, it is clear that the Pets & Animals category is on the steady rise in demand lately. However, I acknowledge that a lot of people may wonder if selling pet products online is really worth it. Let’s take a look at why starting a Shopify pets store might just be one of the best moves you can make right now.

• Growing Pet Market: The pet industry is booming, and people are spending more than ever on their pets. I think it’s a great time to tap into this market since there's no shortage of enthusiastic pet lovers ready to buy.
• Passion-Driven Business: If you’re an animal lover, running a pet store could be a lot of fun. It doesn’t feel like work when you genuinely care about the products you're selling and the customers you’re helping.
• Wide Product Variety: There are so many types of pet products you could sell, from toys and grooming supplies to food and accessories. Having a broad range means you can easily adjust based on demand and find your niche.
• Emotional Buying Power: Pet owners love spoiling their pets, and this emotional connection can lead to consistent sales. I’ve seen people buy things they’d never buy for themselves, but they’ll happily spend for their pets, which makes it a steady market.
• Scalable Business Model: Shopify makes scaling pretty easy, with tools to expand when you're ready. Whether you want to start small with niche products or grow to offer more, Shopify can handle it as you go along.

How to build/start a Shopify pets store

Being an eCommerce store can be frightening and exciting at the same time. But, as long as you start with preparation, there is not much to be afraid of. There are many aspects in building/starting a Shopify pets store, here is how to start:

1. Deciding on your business model

Your business model may sound a bit overwhelming to decide first, but having the right mindset from the start really helps in the long run. You can consult with a professional to determine your business models among the options of:

• Partnership
• Sole Proprietor
• Corporation
• LLC

Most businesses on Shopify are Sole proprietors or partnerships, but the platform is fully capable of providing features for bigger corporations. If your business model is LLC or Corporation, naturally you would have to pay taxes. But, as a sole proprietor, your personal assets can be seized if you are unable to pay your debts.

If you are a small and medium-sized business, you wouldn’t have to worry too much when starting out. You just need a solid business plan to start, and it comes in super handy if you need financial support. Your business plan should indicate the purpose of your pet business, explain how it will be marketed, promotion and advertising ideas, and the markets to sell products.

The plan will cover questions about your potential competitors, prospective customers, and the number of employees you want to hire, and maybe the financial requirements to start. This is on paper only at this stage, as we will dig in deeper in the next step.

2. Choose your pet product types

Based on the types of pet stores above, you should be able to decide on what products to sell. Take a look at your business plan and resources, as well as personal interests to make up your mind. Online pet stores are known for selling a variety of products, so you don’t have to box yourself in a certain niche yet.

When choosing your products, it is important to think of your target market and research competitors to see what products they are currently selling well.

3. Find product suppliers

Assuming that you’ve chosen your preferred product, the next step is to find the suppliers for your Shopify pets store. There are basically three common ways to find manufacturers for a pet store:

• Online marketplaces: Giant online marketplaces like Amazon, Aliexpress, Alibaba have all kinds of suppliers from around the world. Some can be local and convenient, yet some are overseas with much better prices. Depending on your resources, you can contact suppliers to make an agreement. Be careful when working abroad, not every supplier is trustworthy.
• Directories: Online directories like the Pet Food Industry and Salehoo can give you amazing suppliers. By using these directories, you can find the most convenient suppliers from your locations, but at a small cost to sign up.
• Dropshipping: Many new eCommerce stores find this method to be a cost-effective way to start, especially on a low budget. With dropshipping, your products are shipped directly to the customers from third-party suppliers. Dropshipping can be convenient for both consumers and sellers.

Of course, you can produce your own pet products at home and sell them, but make sure you follow all the requirements from the government.

4. Create a business name

It can be hard to come up with a catchy and creative business name that can attract potential buyers. But there are many Shopify business name generators that you can use, many of which are free. Try to think of a few different options, because you will need to look up and see if the name is already taken. Also, remember to register your business name, both online and offline.

5. Start your Shopify pets store

Here is the last step of how to build/start a Shopify pets store, the most important aspects to keep in mind are:

5.1. Claim your domain name

There is no right or wrong when choosing your business name, and the same goes for the domain name. It can be anything, but you want the name to stay in the potential customers’ minds. When you sign up with Shopify, you can buy the domain name during or after setting up your online store.

An existing brand like Pet Playgroundz has definitely received some benefits from having a relevant name and domain. A name that well represents your niche will help people easily remember your brand.

5.2. Design the store categories

Depending on your business type and specific offerings, how you design your product categories will help your buyers shop more easily. Many pet stores offer products for multiple types of animals, so logically, ‘Animals’ should be their root categories. You can easily design your categories with Shopify’s store editor and add products into each sub-category along the way.

5.3. Have a marketing plan for your pet business

Marketing is a whole new world to some, but it is an essential part of an online pet store’s marketing. There is something you should keep in mind when creating a marketing plan:

• Competitors: Establishing your competitors will help a lot in coming up with a marketing plan. If you observe how they are promoting their stores and products, you can learn to achieve better results in a short time. Basic keyword analysis of competitors will help you filter the most important keywords for your online store and design strategies for SEO and Paid Marketing.
• Blogging: Blogging is a great way to drive organic traffic to your pet store and give superb results in niche markets. Pet lovers love to read about how to take care of their pets, so it is a good idea to create meaningful content and attract new audiences. Not to mention link building, which is important for your site’s position on search engine results like Google.
• SEO and paid advertising: Search engine optimization is the best practice to obtain higher organic search results. It helps you gain a strong position, you can have more organic visitors, and increase sales. There are many free Shopify SEO tools and apps that help you achieve these results faster.

Determining the best marketing strategy for your business will require you to try new methods, test them, and then adjust accordingly. Marketing is an ongoing and ever-changing process. What works today may not still be tomorrow. The important thing to remember is to stay on top of the changes and refresh your strategy once in a while.

5.4. Create and launch a well-designed pet store

With Shopify, you can easily pick a premade theme and have a professional look for your pet store. There are 73 themes in the Shopify Themes Store, many of which have variations, making up to over 100 themes available. If you are not sure what to do, hire a pro to design your store, choose someone with experience in making a Shopify store.

Read more: How to Choose Shopify Themes that Sells?

Your website should be easy to navigate and understand. It also should have good visual, interactive elements, and throughout the information. Including customer testimonials can be an effective promotional tool. Your online store is also the gateway to your social media pages and your newsletter service, as well as contact information.

When you are happy with the result, you can launch your Shopify pets store, then apply the marketing plan to start promoting your brand to the target customers. Don’t forget to check if you have established the basics of order processing, such as online payment methods, shipping methods, and automated confirmation emails.

5 pets store ideas to start on Shopify

As the pet owners go to great lengths to take care of their pets, your store can cover many different needs of the little friends like food, grooming, training, and fashion. Yes, you would be surprised to see how owners make sure their pets get everything they need and even beyond.

The types of pets stores that you can consider to sell on Shopify include are:

1 - Pet food store

One of the most basic needs of pets, you can start with the food section. This is probably the highest profit-making niche as every pet owner needs this. They want to make sure their pets have the right nutrition and proteins, so many brands have made great packaged foods for different kinds of pets. So, you can sell pet food of all brands to generate profits or focus on a specific brand and type of pet.

Just for dogs, you already have food products like wet food, dry kibbles, puppy food, prescription diet meals, bakery, milk replacements, and more. Also, you can provide food for cats, birds, fishes, hamsters, squirrels, monkeys, guinea pigs, reptiles, and even some strange pets like lions or tigers.

2- Pet living style store

An online store’s next opportunity is in pet living and other things they need for comfortable home space. Back in the days, a dog may only need a cage and a leash, but now, it can have towels, beds, toys, and much more. There is a ton of stuff that you can try selling.

Here is a list of thing that you can sell as a pet living style store

• Beds
• Towels
• Blankets and bedsheets
• Travel crates
• Toys
• Sofas and chairs
• Collars
• Muzzles
• Leashes
• Litter boxes

3- Pet fashion store

Pets can explore fashion trends too, and owners feel like proud parents when they see how beautiful their pets can look. There are many clothes and fashion products that you can provide, such as:

• Clothes
• Hats
• Warm clothing
• Shoes
• Backpack
• Costumes (think of Halloween)
• Container backpack (for traveling with the owner)

4- Pet grooming/spa store

This is when pet owners show extra care for their pets like real children. In your online pet store, you can sell various grooming products with huge margins. Multiple products are there to choose from, such as:

• Showers and bath accessories
• Shampoos and conditioners
• Deodorizers
• Brushes
• Hair removals and rollers
• Combs
• Dematting tools
• Wipes
• Nail cutters
• Washing devices
• Moisturizers
• Skincare liquids

And pretty much anything that can make a pet beautiful. Selling grooming and spa products can be worth your investment.

5- Pet health store

The next big niche is selling pets’ health-related products. Pets these days can face many harms from the environment and their own genetic problems, and owners are very prudent about their pets so health becomes a top priority. Here are some health products that your store can sell.

• Vitamins
• Supplements
• Dental care products
• Flea, Lice, Tick control products
• Health powders
• Nail care products
• Spray
• Vet tables
• Massage oils
• Ear cleaning kits
• Minerals

As you can see, there are many areas that you can try selling pet products with hundreds of manufacturers with millions of already procured products. You can pick any niche or more to start your own Shopify pet store. This can be based on your resources, preferred types of pets, and interests. This can be confusing, so let’s see how to build a store in the next section.

💎Read more:

• 8 Best Niches for Dropshipping
• 17 Best Shopify Niches & Products to Sell

3 Best Shopify pets store examples

Shopify store owners are no strangers to finding new niches and exploiting them. A one-of-a-kind pet brand with unique selling points will bring far more expressiveness than any large retail store, putting it in a better position to attract new customers. With this in mind, here are some best Shopify pets store examples that you can take inspiration from:

TeddyBob Pet Supplies

TeddyBob is a Canada-based retailer that provides all kinds of basic items for cat and dog lovers. While having a large collection, they do a great job of narrowing down the focus and cutting out choice paralysis. Customers will find their product categories very easy to navigate despite the fact that they sell everything from heating pads to litter boxes.

This is thanks to a modern and sleek design provided by Shopify. The store is using the customized Boost theme on the Shopify Themes Store at the price of $330. Aside from the color variant, TeddyBob tends to have just a few options for each sub-category. This is smart since customers will spend less time browsing and make a basic choice more quickly, leading to more conversions.

Barking Babies

Vancouver-based Shopify pets store Barking Babies provides services on spa, boutique, kennel, and puppy-training facilities. The services included pretty much every dog-related activity you can think of, putting a huge emphasis on the dogs’ health and social aspect.

Another thing that you can learn from Barking Babies is the brand’s interest in community and companionship. Much of the website’s content focuses on the importance of socialization for dogs, which immediately relates to dog owners. They want the best lives for their little friends, and Barking Babies looks like the best club. This is especially good for brand loyalty and encouraging return customers.

The Dog Bakery

California-based Shopify pets store The Dog Bakery sells cookies, chewy treats, biscuits, and custom cakes for all kinds of dogs. Pet owners love showing appreciation for their four-legged friends, so treating them with custom cakes and unique parties is not a surprise.

The Dog Bakery’s branding is simple yet effective, Visitors can also buy collars, leashes, and toys in the store, aside from cakes and cookies. Combined with an easy to remember the name, the store is sure to stick in the consumer’s mind when finding a store to spoil their good boys and girls. The store also uses a customized theme not available on the theme store to make it more special.

Final words

This article has covered all the essential steps to help you build and start your own Shopify pets store, from choosing a niche to setting up your online presence. If you're ready to get started, take it step by step, stay consistent, and don't forget to keep your customers' needs front and center.

FAQs

Can you sell pets on Shopify?

Shopify's policy prohibits the sale of live animals on its platform, including mammals, reptiles, fish, birds, and invertebrates. Attempting to sell live animals can lead to account suspension.

How much does it cost to start a pet Shopify store?

Starting a pet Shopify store involves costs such as the Basic Shopify plan at $39 per month, a custom domain around $11 per year, and initial marketing expenses ranging from $50 to $200. Additional costs may include premium themes ($140–$180) and various app subscriptions.

Is a pet store profitable?

Pet stores can be profitable, with average profit margins between 30% and 50%. Success depends on factors like location, product selection, and effective marketing strategies.

Which pet business is most profitable?

Pet grooming services are among the most profitable pet businesses due to consistent demand and relatively low startup costs. Other lucrative ventures include pet boarding, training, and specialized pet products.

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