Covid
Covid-19 had a profound and lasting impact on the UK pet industry, reshaping consumer habits, retail operations, and supply chain resilience. Under this tag, Pet Gazette explores how pet shops, distributors, and petcare brands navigated lockdown restrictions, staffing challenges, product shortages, and evolving customer expectations. We also report on the post-Covid trading landscape — including lasting shifts towards online sales, changes in in-store footfall, altered buying patterns, and recovery strategies. Coverage is tailored to support pet retailers and supply chain professionals adapting to the sector’s ongoing evolution in the wake of the pandemic.
-
Aug- 2020 -5 AugustFeatures
Barking up the right tree
Prior to COVID-19 completely changing the way we, as consumers behave, the pet industry was leading in terms of innovation, cross-sector development and retail growth. One of the industry leaders, Pets at Home, reported record sales for year ending 26th March 2020, exceeding the £1bn mark. Pet food brands large…
Read More » -
4 AugustAppointment
Vital Pet Group appoints head of supply chain
Vital Pet Group has announced the appointment of Sean Kelly as head of supply chain. Kelly has over 14 years experience within the pet industry and will be working with teams across the Vital business to bring about operational efficiencies. Prior to this, he has held senior positions at Sinclair…
Read More » -
3 AugustManufacturers
Burns Pet Nutrition partners with Dog Furiendly
Burns Pet Nutrition has partnered with Cwmbran-based pet travel platform Dog Furiendly as its official dog food partner and sponsor for the year. The one year partnership will see the two companies working together to arrange communal walks and virtual meet-ups amid the Covid-19 pandemic. Dog Furiendly said as part…
Read More » -
Jul- 2020 -30 JulyCoronavirus
BSAVA president comments on confirmed Covid-19 pet case
BSAVA President, Professor Ian Ramsey has commented on the Defra announcement of the first confirmed case of a pet cat infected with Covid-19 in the UK. Earlier this week, The UK’s chief veterinary officer has confirmed that the virus responsible for Covid-19 has been detected in a pet cat in…
Read More » -
30 JulyManufacturers
Nestlé growth boosted by pet sales
Nestlé has reported that organic growth reached 2.8% in its half-year results, with real internal growth of 2.6% and pricing of 0.2%. This was largely supported by sustained momentum in Purina PetCare and Nestlé Health Science. By product category, the largest growth contributor overall was Purina PetCare, led by its…
Read More » -
30 JulyFeatures
Coronavirus diaries: London Vet Specialists
It’s safe to say we did not expect Covid-19 to have quite the effect it did. We were all under the impression that increased hand hygiene and maintaining distance would be enough to keep everyone safe and well. When lockdown was introduced the world was hit hard, very quickly. In…
Read More » -
28 JulyCoronavirus
Edinburgh Dog and Cat Home postpone 2020 events
Edinburgh Dog and Cat Home has announced the postponement of its 2020 annual events amid the Covid-19 pandemic. The organisation made the “difficult decision” to postpone its Paws by the Prom Open Day and Christmas Market. Other events which have also been postponed include Pub Quiz, Car Boot Sale and…
Read More » -
28 JulyCoronavirus
Covid-19 confirmed in pet cat in the UK
The UK’s chief veterinary officer has confirmed that the virus responsible for Covid-19 has been detected in a pet cat in the UK. The infection was confirmed following tests at the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) laboratory in Weybridge on 22 July. Government officials said although this is the…
Read More » -
28 JulyCoronavirus
RVC boards Covid research project
The Royal Veterinary College (RVC) has been awarded a grant worth almost £200,000 to join a collaborative research project that will examine companion animal susceptibility to coronavirus. The study, named MASCOT (Mapping Animal Susceptibility to Coronavirus: Outcomes and Transcriptomics), will aim to achieve a greater understanding of why certain people…
Read More » -
28 JulyFeatures
Supply, demand and meeting customer expectations
Demand for pets over the past few months has soared. Wood Green, The Animals Charity’s dog rehoming enquiries increased by more than 253% during lockdown and over 20,000 people contacted Wood Green about getting a new pet between April and June – more than half of which were for dogs.…
Read More »
