Following today’s release of Pets at Home’s figures for the 52 weeks ending 27th March 2025; Emily Scott, retail analyst at GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company, offers her view: “Pets at Home has seen its Vet Group division thrive in its FY2024/25, as the retailer continues to capitalise on opportunities in the petcare world, aiming to become a one-stop shop for pets. Its Vet Group arm outperformed as it continues to expand its footprint, benefitting from a strong demand for pet healthcare in convenient locations. Vet Group revenue grew by a healthy 13.0% to £655.1m largely driven by more visits and a push on Care Plans which contributed 9.0% to Vet Group growth alone. Pet owners are increasingly likely to take their animals to the vets when they have access to care plans that minimise high one-off costs, making veterinary services more affordable and accessible, driving more visits which is likely to have a positive impact on retail sales. Vet services now account for over half of Group underlying profit before tax from a third of group consumer revenue demonstrating that this more profitable arm of the business is worth developing further.
“Pets at Home’s retail division underperformed compared to vet services, with consumer retail revenue declining 1.8% and like-for-like (LFL) sales down 2.0%. Despite growing the Pets Club base by 5% to 8.2million members, Pets at Home is yet to fully translate this into meaningful revenue growth however the retailer is well-placed to benefit in the future as consumer confidence and living standards gradually rise. In a bid to drive spend, Pets at Home has launched a new subscription service which allows shoppers to receive regular orders of pet products, backed up by a best price guarantee. This addition to its proposition will enable it to better compete with the convenience of online pet food brands like Tails.com, which offer direct-to-door delivery, while the expertise it can offer via instore staff gives it an edge in a market where few pet retailers focus on experiential retail.
“Pets at Home has now completed two major infrastructure projects, the single site distribution centre in Stafford and the overhaul of its digital platform. In the long term, Pets at Home should benefit from the increased operational efficiency and improved customer experience which together will deliver higher margins and support growth
