Pet Owners Are Turning To Subscription Services—Here’s Why

Since the outbreak of Covid-19 earlier this year consumers  have avoided brick and mortar stores while leaning into curbside pick up and home delivery options. Due to supply chain problems, consumer spending habits have  shifted to direct to consumer subscription boxes particularly the ones in essential services. New customers who never used subscription boxes before are flooding into the market. 

One in five people are buying subscription boxes in 2020 because they want their goods delivered within the timeframe they need their products available according to a new study from CouponFollow, an online hub for collecting coupon codes and promotions from retailers. The study surveyed more than 1,000 US consumers and more than half (51%) said that they had purchased a subscription box to try new products while 39% said they enjoy receiving products by mail. 37% of respondents said that subscription boxes are “easier than shopping.”

“Customers are hunting for deals in these times more than ever before and subscription boxes offer a fair return on time and money saved. People are leaning into trusted brands more than ever, sticking to brands they trust who will deliver them whatever they need right to their doorstep during the pandemic,” KD Frueh, President of dog and cat toy company KONG said. 

The pandemic hasn’t only changed the lifestyle of humans, but for pets too. Shelters have been empty for the first time in years and pets are actually loving their owners being at home 24/7. That being said pet owners have leaned into making their pet’s lifestyle more comfortable and enjoyable at home as well as their own. Shopping preferences for pets has also completely changed due to stores being closed. Pet owners turned to fast and easy e-commerce options. Pet owners who originally relied on commerce for safety reasons have now stayed with this purchasing practice for convenience even when stores did open back up.

Pet subscription service, KONG Box, launched prior to the pandemic but saw a massive increase in subscriptions by the end of March 2020 to their popular dog and cat subscription boxes. “When we launched the KONG Box in 2019 we experienced a strong response, which we had expected. Then, between March and June of this year, we more than doubled our dog-loving customer base, spurred in no small part by the increasing importance of our relationships with our dogs during the times we’ve been spending more time at home during the pandemic. But thanks to the increasing reliance on subscription and home delivery services, and especially the services that are highly customized, we don’t see this trend going away anytime soon,” said Brandon Delgrosso, the president of Pattern Ventures who is head of the KONG Box program. 

Subscription boxes entice brand loyalty. Customers are not shopping around trying new products when they have a subscription box because it’s already a done deal. Customers don’t need to try new products because in their minds it’s handled. If they’re buying the same product every month maybe the customer will look around for the best value more closely to find the best savings for the best product leaving the customer vulnerable to potentially end up switching over to a different brand or worse building a new affinity or loyalty to the competition. 

Online shopping faces the same difficulties where one brand can undersell the competition by selling a similar item for simply one dollar  less. When the customer is locked in with a yearly subscription, the subscription service takes over the shopping decision making so they aren’t tempted to possibly switch over to a different brand. Every time the customer shops online for a product they regularly buy it leaves them vulnerable to recommendations from e-commerce platforms as the suggestions show all the shopping options available including competing brands.

“KONG Boxes didn’t come about because of Covid-19, but the needs of pets and owners during this time speaks to some important trends we’re seeing right now. Our time with our dogs is more important than ever. We see the interest and need for services such as subscription box programs growing substantially in response to the pandemic,” Khara Schuetzner, MA, CPDT-KSA, CNWI founder and head trainer of The Doggie Spot.

While subscription boxes in the essential services categories like HelloFresh, Dollar Shave Club, and KONG Box, are doing well, subscription boxes in the non essential services markets may suffer. According to the CouponFollow survey approximately one in five people said they plan to cancel their subscriptions due to Covid-19 related financial hardships. 30% said they intend to cancel their technology-related subscriptions and 26% said they plan to cancel their clothing services subscriptions. Subscription boxes saw an initial surge in popularity in the 2010’s led by the likes of beauty service Birchbox and grooming supplier Harry’s. Since the 2016 $1 Billion acquisition of Dollar Shave Club by Unilever to now, the market has exploded with direct to consumer monthly subscriptions for everything a household could possibly need from ready to cook meals to pharmacy essentials, and even monthly wine subscriptions have swelled.

The pet sector is a particularly interesting market according to industry expert Anna Zege, co-founder of GroomIt, the on demand pet grooming application that delivers hyper local cat and dog groomers to customers doorsteps just like calling an Uber. “KONG Box is an example of an extremely successful subscription service in addressing the largest markets in the pet industry. Because they’re not as involved in some of the smaller U.S. segments, like grooming, other subscription services have piggybacked on the company’s success.” The industry group Pet Grooming & Boarding estimates the overall U.S. market size of the pet grooming industry is around $9 billion. 

Often treated like a family member, a lot of people spend a lot of money on their pets in the US. “In New York, with almost one million dogs, our pet grooming market size is clearly smaller but growing quickly.  We see that growth coming from rising pet adoptions and ownership, and people treating their pets like they own the house, which is increasing owners’ spending on grooming, accessories and food products. Groomit alleviates decision fatigue because the application gets pet owners grooming services on demand when they need it for a more optimized one and done approach,” added Zege.

The trend is working in favor for companies that familiarize their goods and services by incentivizing consumers with subscriptions given they provide  enough perks for the customer that other shopping alternative become obsolete. Many consumers who make repeat purchases will often times become accustomed making a subscription brand a part of their daily life.