Pet parents are valuable shoppers in more ways than brands and retailers might realize. Our proprietary research into pet parent purchase behaviors reveals that their values as shoppers extend well beyond just the pet category.

How Well Do You Really Know Your Pet Shoppers?

Pet brands and retailers might know that 82 million U.S. pet-owning households are expected to spend $150 billion on their furry pets in 2024. But did you know that these pet owners also are more likely to spend money on gifts for almost anyone, including coworkers and neighbors?

Here are a few other surprising pet-category findings from our How America Shops® surveys.

Pet ownership spans demographics but decreases with income and age:

1. Pet owners cross income groups: 45% live in households earning under $50,000, one-third in households earning $50,000 to $100,000 and almost 75% in households earning more than $100,000.
2. Pet owners are younger: 41% are between 18 and 34, 34% are between 35 to 54 and 26% are older than 55.
3. Pet owners are more likely than non-pet owners to have children living at home. If you have children, you know they will not take “No” on the pet topic. This means that on average pets tend to live in larger households.
4. Pet parents are more than twice as likely to identify as LGBTQIA vs. those without pets.
5. Among pet owners, women are less likely than men to own dogs and more likely to own cats.
6. Hispanics are pet people too, with 53% owning dogs and 37% owning cats.

WSL’s Fur-Raising Facts About Pet Purchase Behavior In 2024

In our How America Shops® shopper surveys, we categorize respondents so we can distinguish the purchase patterns and preferences of pet owners from non-pet owners. We were curious how the events of recent years, from pandemic-era pet adoptions to rising prices, are shaping how consumers shop the pet category – and beyond – in 2024, Here’s what we found.

From our How America Shops® pet insights:

7. Furry friends often get healthier diets than their humans. Pet parents put their “babies” before themselves. Despite rising prices, they are more likely to prioritize certain health factors in their pets’ nutrition than in their own food, such as natural, no-artificial ingredients or colors.
8. Pet owners buy more categories across all types of retail outlets, from drug stores and supermarkets to dollar stores and even beauty chains.
9. Having a pet means buying lots of treats, and not just for your pet. Nearly half of pet owners will spend extra money on daily treats for themselves, compared with one-third of non-pet owners.

10. Some pet owners prefer to buy their pet items where they shop for household goods for the whole family. These shoppers are more likely to be female, Gen X or Boomers, and earn lower incomes.
11. Others prefer to buy from places that specialize in pets. These pet owners are more likely to be male, Gen Z, higher-income and Hispanic. Of the nearly 87% of pet owners who bought pet food and treats in the previous three months in 2024, 59% purchased these goods only in physical stores – 50% at PetSmart and 39% at Petco. Of online pet shoppers, 28% purchased on Chewy.com in the previous three months.

12. 57% of pet owners use mobile tap-to-pay options when checking out their purchases, compared with 43% of non-pet owners.
13. Pet owners are more likely than the general population to use shopping QR codes for scanning coupons (26%), reading product reviews and comparing prices (17%).

Best Practices in the Pet Category

Here are our 7 best practices based on these WSL insights:

• When marketing to pet owners, think families. Consider the needs of larger households, such as meals for large gatherings, furnishing bigger homes and multi-generational health needs. Are there companies outside the pet industry that could be unique partners for in-store displays or promotional partnerships? Brands could talk to retailers about their role in building bigger baskets among those valuable, bigger families.
• Cater to why shoppers prioritize healthy eating for their pets over themselves.
  
  • Pets have much more limited diets than humans, so each food or treat choice has an outsized effect on their health.
  • Many pet owners don’t have pet insurance and want to avoid having to pay for expensive care at the vet, let alone the emotional toll of a pet illness.
  • Products with relevant pet health benefits or innovation are more likely to encourage trading up, which is a win for the brand and the retailer.
• Remember that pets are members of the family. Brands and retailers should find ways to leverage the emotional relationship pet parents have with their “pet babies.” After all, celebrating that bond and encouraging human-pet interaction has mental health benefits for people, too. Look for opportunities that can help deepen emotional loyalty to the brand.
• Display pet purchases outside the pet aisle to drive incremental sales. Position pet impulse items like treats and toys in unexpected but easy-to-grab locations. Use endcaps, the check-out lane and aisles that kids and parents tend to browse together, such as cereal, cookies and frozen foods.
• Don’t forget the new front-end when shoppers come inside to pick up their online orders. Is it a good spot for an impulse pet purchase or a reminder to trade up to better pet food?
• Our research further reveals that many shoppers head inside the store and down the aisles after curbside/in-store pick up. Will a coupon for a pet item help cross-sell and encourage an incremental purchase?
• Retailers and brands should use their digital coupons to reward pet owners who search for coupons on their mobile phones.

Have a Pet Project? Give Us a Shout!

WSL is knowledgeable about pet categories and pet parents as shoppers, and we can tailor research for you through our customized consulting services. To learn how pets benefit their humans’ health, listen to our “Power of Pets” podcast, where our CEO and Chief Shopper Wendy Liebmann chats with Lindsey Braun, Vice President of Research and Operations at Human Animal Bond Research Institute (HABRI).