How To Start A Pet Business: 8 Helpful Tips for Success

Animal lovers cherish their pets as family, lavishing them with care and attention. This devotion creates ample business opportunities for aspiring entrepreneurs. That’s why we have guidance on “how to start a pet business in 2025”.  A love for pets may spark ideas. But, a successful venture needs more than a good market. You need a plan to turn your pet idea into a successful business. You also need industry knowledge and business savvy. It must cater to devoted pet owners.

Running a pet business takes work. It requires a vast knowledge of pet breeds, common problems, and owners’ questions.

This article will help you understand the pet business better. It focuses on some popular pet businesses and how they meet the needs of pets and their owners. It also offers tips for starting your own pet business.

Are pet businesses profitable?

 

US pet owners have shopped at an estimated $143.6 billion in 2023 for the likes of their pets’ feed and/or treats, &c. This illustrates there is a need and desire for pet stores but are they profitable?

Sales of pet stores in the US have been growing since 2012 and this trend will be maintained until the year 2028. There is money to be made but operating costs vary by the form of pet business you intend to run.

(e.g., pet walking and sitting) services may have low budgets for marketing and insurance fees. However, the services of grooming, boarding, and daycare are frequently faced with higher expenses due to the requirement for a physical facility or a mobile base.

Eight Best Pet Business Tips

Pet businesses offer many services and products. These include dog walking, grooming, bowls, and chew toys. Some cater to dog and cat lovers. Others focus on reptiles, spiders, and other exotic pets. This diversity helps us find profitable, niche markets with little competition.

However, avoid becoming a general merchant that supplies every pet need, as many pet stores do. This can complicate online branding. It puts you in direct competition with big chains and supermarkets.

Remember, the primary consumer group consists of online shoppers who prefer internet-based stores. Let’s explore some specialized pet product and service ideas you can consider:

1. Pet Sitting Services

If you love animals and want to help pet owners, consider pet sitting. It’s an excellent way to break into the pet industry. With two-thirds of US households owning a pet, there is a strong demand for your services.

The expenses of beginning a pet-sitting agency are fairly low. The initial part is mostly about marketing and finding early customers. The largest cost is most probably going to be your insurance premiums. As time goes by, one can list clients. Also, one can grow the business by hiring people.

Today, most pet-sitting businesses serve customers via the Internet. They allow customers to book and pay online, and send alerts about pets’ activities.

Current Australian pet-sitting websites include Petsie, which serves the GTA. Using Petsie, pet owners can find sitters walkers, or any other person to help them with the pets. Even some businesses sell food for unusual pets; snakes, birds, and other pets that people may have at home.

You might start a platform to provide local pet-sitting services. You could be the pet sitter or the service provider.

2. Niche Pet Food

If you love products and care about pet nutrition, start a pet food business. It may be a great fit for you.
To attract consumers in the pet food market, it’s essential to identify a niche. You could focus on specific animals, like dogs or reptiles. Or, you could cater to particular dietary needs.
Producing pet food at an industrial level can be costly. If you intend to prepare the food yourself, you will need to apply for the licenses and permits as required. But if you are good at cooking then you do not have to go for a large business you can start small and add as time goes on.
Selling pet food online can significantly increase your market reach. For example, Maev sells SmallBreed: Natural and Tender, premium raw dog food. It’s available on their website, with delivery across the U.S.
As Maev showed, a unique pet food recipe could attract online customers. They might subscribe for regular shipments of your product.

3. Pet Jackets & Clothing

Besides accessories, pet apparel is also a common product sold. Most pet stores use dropshipping for a wide range of dog and cat jackets and accessories.

It is also highly advisable to niche when it comes to selling dog clothing. You could open a store for a specific breed of clothing. For example, Frenchie Shop sells clothes for French Bulldogs. If you own a French bulldog and need clothes, a brand that targets Frenchies is likely your choice.

Sell pet clothing for specific occasions or lifestyles, like Italian robot pets. The Ruffwear website has hiking gear for outdoor activities with your pet.

4. Dog Walking Services

If you love dogs and enjoy walking, start a dog walking business. You’ll exercise, socialize with cute, wagging-tailed friends, and make some money.

Like pet sitting, businesses in dog walking normally operate within a specific locality. You might walk dogs in your local park. Or, you might try a specialty walk. For example, New Hampshire’s Salty Paws offers coastal walks for dogs.

Businesses like dog walking and pet sitting depend a lot on customer service. The best relationships in this business are based on trust. You can’t build trust without interacting with customers.

5. Pet Accessories

Any pet owner requires simple things like food bowls, toys, litter, and leashes for their pets. These products are easy to get. So, a big customer base remains for this product type.

You might expect that it would be hard for the business to compete with big brands. They mostly sell necessities. But, this is not always the case. Variety entails option overload, which is advantageous to small-scale retailers.

With many products on the market, knowing one type well makes you a brand to your customers.

In the pet accessories niche, you can resell some products as an authorized reseller. For example, Teddybob: A Pet Supplies Shop is a Retailer of Pidan Brand Cat Products.

The second can be organizing products based on thematic or type approach. Only Natural Pet promises to sell products. They must not be linked to its hated “honest promise,” like low-quality ingredients.

6. Pet Training Aids

An idea for starting a pet business is to fill one of the voids most pet owners have to deal with.

The pet industry is ripe with potential. It can improve existing products for pets. Or, it can replace bad products with new, eco-friendly ones. Pets’ lives include feeding and playtime.

For instance, Fresh Patch is gaining popularity for its real grass puppy potty pads. These pads let dogs use the bathroom indoors on real grass. This is especially helpful when training them to go outside. They also come as a natural absorbent compared to regular paper which is good for use in apartments.

7. Pet Grooming

Another service you can offer to pet owners is grooming. Like walking and sitting, grooming businesses rely heavily on customer trust. Dog owners spend an average of $0.99 a year on grooming. This creates many business opportunities in the area.

Besides a physical shop, we can develop and market various grooming-based business ideas. Is there an option for mobile grooming services? Can I focus on grooming nervous or rescued animals? Are you able to accommodate larger breeds?

Some pet groomers are using their grooming as content for social media platforms. For example, Girl With The Dogs posts viral, relaxing dog-bathing and brushing clips. They also serve as marketing for items in her sponsored links.

8. Pet Online Courses

Consumers also would desire to acquire pet care skills from experts for the pets they own. If you have specialist knowledge, an online course could be perfect for you. Or, if you can connect pet experts with owners, it could work too.

In this field of work, it is not mandatory to have any degree, diploma, or other certification. Customers trust certified trainers. But, dog training is easy to enter. Many overestimate the barriers to the business. You don’t need resources for any face-to-face interactions to promote your business.

Wiglo and other companies use an app.

It offers science-based training on 100 topics, including:

• Separation anxiety
• Aggression
• Potty training

It helps customers train their dogs at home.

FAQs

What are the expenses involved in starting a pet business?

Entrepreneurs using credit spend an average of $40,000 in their first year. But, the costs to form a business depend on its model, its number of workers, and if it is digital.

Which are the best business opportunities for pets?

One can make good money in the pet business. Here are some ideas: Provide pet-sitting for pet owners. Develop specialty pet foods for unique breeds. Market pet training and assistance equipment for pets. Others may include: selling pet costumes, pet styling, online pet lessons, and custom pet accessories.

What is the most profitable pet business?

The most lucrative pet-related business is pet grooming. Mobile grooming is more customer-friendly. To start this business, you need about $10,000.

Is the pet industry expanding?

This pet industry has been escalating for the last ten years and expansion is expected in 2028. The main drivers of this growth are more pet owners and a greater focus on pet health.

What are ways that I can make my pet business unique?

The more niche the hobby, the better. Choose a type of animal and a specialized pet niche, like pets for the elderly or border collies. Introduce high-quality products or solutions for a proven consumer demand. Other tips are to treat and respect customers. Also, build an online presence with SEO content and engaging social media posts.