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Pet products and cosmetics. Trade in these goods increasingly profitable .
Christmas spending on pets, the growing popularity of advent calendars, or the selection of quality pet products testify to the increasing humanization of pets in Poland. How do Polish shopping preferences compare with Germany and France? What does this mean for the pet products market, and what prospects do they have for the coming year?
Christmas gifts – Poles at the forefront of Europe
Rising spending on accessories, snacks and toys for pets indicates Poles’ changing attitudes toward their pets and the dynamic development of the market for products for four-legged animals. Caregivers are increasingly concerned that their pets have access to amenities previously associated only with humans. Research by the Fressnapf Group and Maxi Zoo shows that as many as 62% of Poles plan to give their pets Christmas gifts this year. This is the highest result among the countries analyzed – in Germany the percentage is 53% and in France 45%. Even greater generosity can be seen among customers of the Maxi Zoo chain, where as many as 70% of Polish consumers declared they would buy Christmas gifts for their pets, surpassing the result of the French (63%) and Germans (59%).
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– More and more Poles see their pets as full-fledged family members. The changing attitude is reflected in the dynamic development of the pet products market in Poland. We observe this on a daily basis. Customers are more often looking for premium products that not only meet the basic needs of pets, but also provide them with greater comfort and satisfy their emotional needs. – notes managing director of Maxi Zoo Poland, Wojciech Kaminski – Poles have become more conscious. What matters to them is the quality, composition and origin of the goods that go into their shopping cart. Here we clearly see an increase in the importance of sustainability. Our customers are paying more and more attention to the ecological origin of products, choosing for their charges,
the environmentally friendly ones. – He adds.
What is most often found in gifts for pets?
In Poland, the most popular gifts are treats and toys. Both types of products are chosen by 61% of pet guardians each. Accessories and grooming supplies come next, but respondents also declared that they would spend more time with their pets or prepare a Christmas meal for them. The results are very similar in Western Europe, here too these are the two most popular categories. However, the most popular indications differ slightly: in Germany, snacks win (70%), while in France, toys come first (66%). These choices are in line with what we observe at checkouts. Treats, toys, beds and accessories such as blankets or clothes for dogs dominate the pre-Christmas shopping carts, while toys, scratching posts and bowls and water fountains are popular for cats.
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Advent calendars – a new fashion on the Polish market
A novelty on the Polish market are pet advent calendars. They are winning the hearts of Polish consumers – as many as 28% of them plan to buy a special calendar for their pet. This result is almost identical to that in Germany (29%) and higher than in France (17%). This trend shows that Poles want to share the joy of Christmas preparations with their pets as well.
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Humanization of animals as a market driver
People are not giving up on spending on animals despite the continuing troubles with inflation and unsatisfactory private consumption. Figures provided by Maxi Zoo show that for the most part, this year, they plan to spend between €10 and €20 on gifts for pets, an amount comparable to the budgets of pet guardians in Germany and France.
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An interesting phenomenon is the distribution of pledges according to demographic groups. In Poland, the most generous are younger animal caregivers – people aged 18-29, who as often as the group of 30-39-year-olds declare buying gifts for their charges. Moreover, women are far more likely than men to be involved in planning Christmas surprises for animals. This is particularly evident in Poland and France, where the differences in declarations are most pronounced. This pattern of preferences shows that concern for animals is not only spreading, but also resonates particularly strongly among younger and more conscious consumer groups.
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The growth in spending on pets in Poland shows that despite economic challenges, Poles continue to invest in the well-being of their pets, which drives the growth of the pet products market. The Polish market is one of the most promising in Central and Eastern Europe, and 2025 promises to be a time of further growth and innovation in this segment.
– The year 2024 was marked for us at Maxi Zoo with the opening of new outlets. Ultimately, we will be able to boast 145 stores across Poland,” says Grzegorz Kaprzyk, Maxi Zoo’s development director. – Our strategy is based on the desire to reach pet guardians not only in large cities, but also in smaller ones, hence the constant search for new locations. The coming year also promises to be very busy in this regard. We plan to open another 25 stores, mainly in cities where we already operate – we will be densifying the network, but also in new markets, so in 2025 we will be inviting customers to shop in new outlets,” he adds.
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