There is a common saying that if you love what you do, you’ll never work a day in your life. Many people are driven by money, but those driven by having a career doing something they are passionate about tend to find financial success while also feeling more fulfilled, happier, and have a more positive outlook. If you love animals and want to translate that into a career, there are many opportunities allowing you to combine that and partner with an animal franchise.
Animal Franchise Opportunities
The options for animal franchises are vast. Consider the landscape. You can provide services and supplies for cats, dogs, birds, horses, hamsters, rabbits, reptiles and fish. According to the American Pet Products Association, in 2020 nearly $104 billion was spent on animals in the U.S. There has been a marked surge in animal franchises after the 2020 Pandemic stay-at-home orders. Despite people having to watch their household budgets due to lay-offs and shut-downs, more people turned to the animal world to help provide a distraction to the concerns about the Covid-19 crisis. And that boost to have animals in our lives is as strong as ever, heading into 2022. However, going it alone as a start-up business operator can be challenging, which is why partnering with an animal franchise provides you a quicker ramp up in a turnkey venture.
A franchise gives you the best of both worlds. You are able to be your own boss, enjoy business ownership, with the guidance of industry experts, skilled training and support using a proven model designed to be successful. Your franchise fee is the entry fee you pay to be part of the brand, entitling you to the use of a recognized brand name with an established customer base, access to an existing supply chain and ways to market your business already in place. It will allow you to achieve success in a crowded industry. It is invaluable for entrepreneurs who may have little experience running a business, but dream of ownership.
Having a brand name attached to your business is important when it comes to the animal industry. People love their pets and building trust is essential to building a business. As a start-up it will take a while to build a reputation as a trust-worthy business, as a franchisee, however, you have the advantage of joining a franchise with standards your customers already know and trust.
The possibilities for your animal franchise are endless. Perhaps you are interested in pet retail, breeding or supplies. You may want to consider pet-sitting, daycare, grooming, or behavior training. Pet care related businesses are valued at more than $225 billion annually, projected to be $281 billion by next year. As investments go, partnering with an animal franchise is a strong industry to be in.
Wild Birds Unlimited
There are also niche pet-related franchises that are very fulfilling and lucrative. Wild Birds Unlimited is one of them. We sell bird-feeding and bird-watching supplies, bird food, feeders, birdhouses, binoculars, bird baths, field guides and other books about birds. To help you understand the popularity of wild birds for hobbyists, $7.6 billion is spent annually on bird feeding and watching wildlife.
Like many animal franchises, we too successfully pivoted amid the Pandemic to provide backyard enthusiasts with supplies. Wild Birds Unlimited is the leader in the wild bird feeding industry. We experienced a tremendous surge in business as more people were home and found it ideal to walk outside, enjoy nature and take the time to feed backyard birds. The number of bird enthusiasts rose and they are still enjoying the bird-feeding hobby.
In fact, it became so popular, that we updated our e-commerce allowing online shopping to give our customers in more than 350 franchise locations, the best service possible. We remained resilient and recession-proof throughout the challenging times.
What sets us apart is that our franchise store owners have the chance to live out their dream of owning their own business, and they get to do it in a way that brings them fulfillment while also delivering joy to their customers, and their communities.
If you’d like to learn more about business ownership in an animal franchise that combines your love of animals with a lucrative investment, fill out our form and join our flock.