Pets at Home may have seen Q3 revenue grow by 3.5%, but as this fell below its expectations, the retailer has lowered its profit guidance to £132mn for the year – down from its previous goal of £136mn.
In its latest statement, Pets at Home cited “a slowing market” and reported that accessories sales remained “soft”. It did see volume growth and share gains across its food categories.
Furthermore, the vet side of the business witnessed continued strong performance with revenue up 13.4%, and LFL up 13.3%. Pets at Home said this was supported by its vet talent and a shift to more advanced procedures.
Lyssa McGowan, chief executive officer at Pets at Home, commented: “Our colleagues came together over our peak trading period to deliver a record sales performance, growing against a very strong performance in the prior year.
“While a slower market over peak meant our sales growth didn’t quite hit the levels we expected, the business remains well positioned to benefit from long term growth in the sector as we continue to win share and grow volumes across food and deliver differentiated performance through our unique vets business.”
Looking ahead, the pet care retailer will soon be introducing a new digital platform, having successfully trialled and tested it with a group of colleagues. The new platform is designed to improve customer experience and functionality across both its app and website.
“Our new digital platform is a key foundation of our growth strategy, bringing vastly improved user experience to our consumers, and creating opportunities to improve cross-sell into accessories and further grow share of wallet,” explained McGowan.
Additionally, Pets at Home will be launching a new, purpose-built distribution centre to support its omni-channel capabilities.
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