September 19, 2023
Pet Project
How a Simple Idea Transformed the Pet Industry—Furever!
Jim Dougherty
Aviva Publishing (2023)
ISBN: 978-1636182797
“Paw-Some” New Book Shares How One Man Changed the Pet Industry
Everyone has heard of PetSmart whether or not they have a pet. The store chain revolutionized the pet industry by showing that a market existed for big box pet stores and that enough pet parents were out there to support them. But how did this game-changing business get started? It was the brilliant idea of Jim Dougherty, and in his new book, Pet Project: How a Simple Idea Transformed the Pet Industry—Furever, he shares the story of how he began both PetSmart and Petsense by Tractor Supply.
Dougherty begins by sharing his early years from his difficult childhood to the various careers and entrepreneurial ventures he made before he launched PetSmart. Among his efforts, he operated a bike shop and invested in companies doing mail order medical equipment and selling alfalfa sprouts. He did well, but health problems led to the end of his businesses. And then he entered the pet industry and discovered what it means to have enormous success. First, Dougherty was hired to operate a Pet Food Supermart store in Las Vegas. Next, he operated a second one in Phoenix. Then he realized it was time to branch out on his own and began PetSmart. Dougherty is humble about how he came up with the idea for PetSmart, saying he was fortunate to be in the right place at the right time when the pet industry was ready to be revolutionized, and he gives credit to the experiences of previous pet store owners, including the owner of Pet Food Supermart. Regardless, the pet industry was never the same after Dougherty came along.
PetSmart was remarkable in many ways. Previously, most customers bought their dog and cat food from grocery stores or their veterinarian. Most pet stores were small “ma and pa” stores that mostly focused on selling pets. Dougherty decided not to sell pets since the pet population problem resulted in so many pets being euthanized. Instead, PetSmart began doing pet adoptions. PetSmart also catered to pet lovers. One revolutionary move was to allow people to bring their pets into the store with them.
In the beginning, Dougherty encountered some naysayers who didn’t believe a big box pet store would work, but American pet lovers were ready for it. Pet Project is partly a book about how people’s relationships with their pets have changed in the last century or so. A couple of generations ago, dogs had a doghouse and were kept outside. The next generation brought them into the house. Today, Millennials often prefer to have pets over children while Baby Boomer empty nesters are embracing their pets like their own children. Pets have become part of the family, receiving birthday parties and sleeping in our beds. But even Dougherty couldn’t imagine to what a degree people loved their pets and were ready to spoil them.
Within seven years, PetSmart grew to more than one hundred stores, including in Canada and the United Kingdom. When Dougherty began PetSmart in 1986, the pet industry was making $6 billion a year. Today, it earns more than $137 billion a year, and it is continuing to grow.
After several years, Dougherty resigned from the company. Then he had the idea to begin Petsense, a chain of smaller stores for smaller towns that could not support a big box store. That business also grew from its beginnings in 2004 to having 100 stores by 2014, and meanwhile, PetSmart reached more than 1,000 stores by 2008. Obviously, Dougherty knows what he is doing when it comes to pets. Retired now, he wanted to capture his legacy and that of all those in the pet industry he worked with in this book.
One of the real treats of Pet Project is that we don’t have to just take Dougherty’s word for how popular PetSmart has been or how revolutionary his ideas were. The book is filled with interviews of people who worked with Dougherty from CEOs and Vice Presidents of his company to people who worked the registers. It’s like a film documentary in book form. Dougherty also includes stories from others in the pet industry, ranging from those whose dog food brands he carried to the Baker family who started a family business making cat furniture in their home. The Bakers went from selling a couple of truckloads by the roadside to supplying to hundreds of PetSmart stores, which shows how Dougherty’s success also catapulted others to success.
Most importantly, Dougherty believes that the story of Pet Project is the story of pet lovers. In the introduction, he states, “In a way, this is your story. Whether you’re a customer or someone who works in the pet industry, our shared love of pets is what made this story possible.”
The legacy of Dougherty’s businesses goes far beyond supplying cat food or dog collars. Included in Pet Project are some stories that will pull at anyone’s heartstrings. One of my favorites was how PetSmart helped the search and rescue dogs involved at Ground Zero following 9/11. Another story is about a woman who brought her dog to a PetSmart store for the last time to say goodbye before she put him to sleep because it was his favorite place.
Tony de Vos, Co-Founder of Cardinal Laboratories, Inc. and Founder of Westwood Laboratories, Inc. is just one of many people in the book who praises Dougherty as a pioneer, stating:
“Jim did a lot of things other retailers weren’t doing. He had educational programs for his associates. He always talked about his associates as team members. If they learned more about a particular product line or vendor, there was a reward system.
“Management under Jim’s leadership taught the associates how to represent the store and be knowledgeable about solutions. Jim was a pioneer. He’s always thinking in a different way. ‘What can we do? What can we change? How can we improve the customer experience?’ It didn’t happen by itself. It happened with him selecting the right people and pushing things forward.”
However, I think what Dougherty did to revolutionize the pet industry may best be summed up in the words of Vic Mason, President of the World Pet Association, who says, “Jim figured out how to put emotion in a box, and people loved it.” Like perhaps no one else, Dougherty has understood the love people have for their pets, whether it’s a dog, cat, rabbit, fish, or any other animal. And those people responded because they felt understood. And the rest has been history.
Pet lovers will adore Pet Project. Anyone in the pet industry will be fascinated to learn more about the history of that industry and the legacy they have inherited. Even people who do not have pets will be in awe of the way Dougherty built his pet empire. This book is a testament to the enduring love between humans and their best furry friends, a bond that keeps growing stronger.
For more information about Pet Project and Jim Dougherty, visit www.PetProjectTheBook.com.
— Tyler R. Tichelaar, PhD and award-winning author of Narrow Lives and When Teddy Came to Town
