I was going to leave this well alone. My instinct is to run for the hills! But...I can't!
Milly'smum...I'm a champion of the people! I stand for equality, fairness and healthy competition. I'm a modern day Robin Hood... I have nothing against Zooplus.....if you like that sort of thing.
Although it's technically 'competition' to The Pet Extraordinarium, Zooplus is in a different league and we cannot compete with that - and aren't trying to as we'd last about 2 minutes! For everyday stuff, Zooplus does what it says on the tin and, from all accounts does it very well. GO ZOOPLUS!
BUT...Zooplus is a HEEEEEEUUUUUGE company. I wouldn't mind betting that they take in a week what we take in a year, and someone somewhere is getting very, very rich selling tins of cat food and cheap dog beds. And hey, good for them! The Pet Extraordinarium, on the other hand, is a small, family-run business. My partner and I put our house on the line to start the company up 12 months ago and the thought of getting very, very rich is, well...
If we make enough to get by and keep our cats in James Wellbeloved and our bunnies in fresh greens, we're happy! Believe me, you have NO IDEA how competitive the pet market is!
What's more, Zooplus is a different brand proposition entirely to The Pet Extraordinarium. We're Waitrose to their Asda. We're Next to their New Look. We're...well, you get the picture... In marketing terms, they're a 'value brand', but one that is damn good at what they do. We sell collars, beds, bowls, toys and other stuff that is, very intentionally, of a totally different standard when it comes to quality and style. As a result, our stuff generally costs a bit more. But I bet you that Zooplus doesn't scour the market for decent and different products, test everything they stock personally and only sell items they actually like and would recommend to friends! We do...and maybe that will be our downfall. Maybe we should be more money-focused than product-focused?
When it comes to charity, I should bloody hope that Zooplus does support charity! A company that size making that much money can certainly afford to and SHOULD have a social conscience! But you know what, so does The Pet Extraordinarium... It may be a drop in the ocean compared to the amount that Zooplus 'donates', but we have in the past had links with The Blue Cross and have been running a campaign in-store since before christmas to raise badly-needed money for the Oxford Animal Sanctuary, our local rescue centre.
Oh yeah, and before you judge me, I've already been in contact with Purrs in our Hearts about trying to work out some way of helping to raise money for them in future...
So there you go. If occasionally I offer advice as to what's the best radiator bed on the market when someone asks, it's because I actually know that's the case because I've seen them! If I occasionally post a link to one of our products as part of a general discussion on cat collars, it's because I genuinly love and believe in what we have to offer people and because, yes, I'd like nothing better than for them to have a look at our website before they make their choice. But I'm not trying to "flog stuff". I'm here because I love my cats and have something in common with you and everyone else reading this.
The Pet Extraordinarium offers cat lovers like you and me a different alternative to Zooplus or Pet Planet, that's all. I believe that we do what we do damn well and offer service that's second to none.
So, hey, GO THE PET EXTRAORDINARIUM!
Now, where did I leave my bow and arrows....?