Originally published by Don McIntyre, Animal Supply Company CEO, on LinkedIn.com
Over 30 years ago, Randy Reber and John Shine combined one warehouse and a passion for pets to create Animal Supply Company. Since that time, we have grown to 1,200 teammates and 21 warehouses, 10 of which have eCommerce fulfillment. Last month, Goldman Sachs and Summit Partners acquired a majority stake in our company. While a lot has changed, our values and mission remain our anchors, and our commitment to each other and our partners, is to be better.
Our values, including integrity, collaboration, and accountability, will remain our focus. We will have continuity of leadership with our executive team, and with Randy joining the new Board of Managers. It’s very appropriate that he’s part of us moving forward, continuing the legacy he was instrumental in starting more than 30 years ago.
Randy is a pet owner and independent retailer himself. He is rooted in a passion for pets that inspired him to start Animal Supply, but a leader willing to take risks and push us forward. He understands that there is nothing more important in independent pet specialty than relationships, and that founding principle will never change.
Like Randy, our new owners understand the power of independents, who provide deep product knowledge and build personal relationships with consumers, and who believe, like we do, that pets are part of the family. Their investment in our business is a clear vote of confidence in our purpose and our people, who are the most experienced leaders and teammates in the category.
Focusing on independents is our team’s priority, helping them compete in an ever-changing environment with big players like Amazon, Chewy.com, Petco and PetSmart. Our energy will be pointed at two critical areas:
Operational Excellence
We’re recommitting to operations and customer experience, including an order fill rate goal of 100%, on-time delivery, and a new returns model. It’s important that our customers have confidence in us again.
Innovation
One way we’re simplifying the business is through innovative digital products. We are leading the way with investments in technology that allow us to serve customers in meaningful ways. Last year, we launched a new best-in-class national eCommerce platform, mobile app, and retail ordering website. Mobile and web provide simple and personalized shopping experiences with features new to our industry. All our digital solutions are designed with the user experience in mind. We understand pet store owners are consumers too.
With Goldman Sachs and Summit Partners by our side, we’ll continue connecting trusted brands with independent retailers who love pets just like we do. We understand that we succeed only when they do. Going forward, we’ll remain rooted in our purpose and committed to playing our part to strengthen the independent channel, helping it compete and thrive in today’s complex marketplace.
