Pet Products Are Big Business in Seattle, U.S.

For years, Seattle has routinely ranked atop numerous lists for being pet-friendly. Rover and Redfin recently released a survey saying Seattle was the top dog-friendly city of 2019, while Dogtime ranked it No. 2.

Now, according to a new report by global analytics company Edge by Ascential, peoples growing affinity with their pets is driving demand for premium pet care products. The report found that sales in North America of such products will grow to $281 billion by 2023, a 37 percent increase from today.

Edge by Ascential said owners are increasingly humanizing their pets with a focus on health and wellness.

“The focus will soon become ‘table-stakes, evidenced by retailers like Petco banning artificial ingredients from cat and dog food sold at its stores, says Ioli Macridi, an analyst at Edge by Ascential. With this in mind, brands and retailers must ensure they are catering towards owners’ desire to care after their pets.

The report also highlights that online sales in the household and pet care category are set to grow at the fastest rate over the next five years and are expected to increase by 15% between 2018 and 2023. This surpasses online growth in a range of other sectors including health and beauty, electronics and fashion.

Another report from One Click Retail found that Americans spent nearly $800 million on pet products on Seattle-based Amazon.com alone during the first half of 2018.