The Big Pet Store’s Journey
Established over two decades ago The Big Pet Store in Halesowen has evolved a local market stall to one of the largest independent pet supply retailers in the Black Country.
Committed to prioritising pet welfare and educating customers on optimal nutrition through its own brand pet food, Kanine Kitchen, they have cemented their reputation for quality and care in the region.
When Darren first came to us in 2022 he was navigating taking the reins of the family run business from his dad. He had worked in the business on and off throughout his life but as his dad was looking to take a step back from the day-to-day Darren was ready to step up and start to take the business forward for the next generation.
Darren was working seven days a week, doing everything from the cleaning to helping customers to trying to implement changes to the store and was lacking in a clear plan on how to get to where he wanted to.
Working with ActionCoach Black Country
Kerry worked with Darren on looking at the future and getting some clear, structured goals in place (both personal and business) to instil focus and purpose into what Darren was trying to achieve.
“We worked on looking at the vision for the future and the evolution into a Pet Experience Centre, moving away from a traditional retail environment and to become a sought after destination for passionate pet owners. This was only ever going to be possible by freeing up Darren’s time working in the business so that he could work on the business.”
“A lot of the staff joke that I only work part-time now…but I can do a lot of work behind the scenes now…more forward thinking and forward planning.”
Darren spent time creating clear systems and processes for every aspect of the store which empowered his team to take on more responsibility and gave him time back to focus on more strategic thinking and starting to develop his ideas for taking the customer experience to the next level.
As with all coaching clients, Kerry encouraged Darren to take a deeper look at the numbers of the business and start to understand what they really meant. These insights resulted in changes to the way that stock was managed, pricing structures and margin and as a result turnover and profitability have increased. This analysis also led to a push on increasing Loyalty Members to the store and these numbers have more than doubled in the last 12 months.
Throughout all of the work that Darren has done there has not only been a transformation in the business but also in Darren as a business owner – in fact this has been the biggest change we have seen with Darren as a client. Family businesses can come with complexities and what Darren has been able to do through working his own self-development and building his confidence is start to separate the business from the family and look towards the future of The Big Pet Store.
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