Nnnooooo!!! This is the overwhelming response as word spread via social media on April 18 when PetSmart, Inc. announced it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Chewy, Inc., the online pet retailer with amazing discount prices.
It appears PetSmart has a strategy and combining the new companies will create a better company that will be better able to reach pet product consumers both online and in-store in North America. The deal is expected to close by the end of PetSmart’s 2017 fiscal quarter.
In an interview with Yahoo Finance, PetSmart president and chief executive officer stated
“PetSmart strives to be the trusted partner to pet parents and pets in every moment of their lives. We are focused on improving our customers’ experience in-store and online as we continue to execute against our long-term strategic initiatives. Chewy’s high-touch customer e-commerce service model and culture centered around a love of pets is the ideal complement to PetSmart’s store footprint and diverse offerings. Together, PetSmart and Chewy will provide the most convenient customer experience to a wider base of pet parents across every channel.”
Chewy fans aren’t so sure the merger will benefit their pets or their wallets. They have some of the cheapest prices in the pet food industry. Coupled with super fast delivery (including order accuracy) and excellent customer service, Chewy, founded by Ryan Cohen and Michael Day in 2011, is one website shared by pet owners as being the one go-to company for all of their pets needs.
What’s happening is the merger of PetSmart, with over 1,500 physical stores with Chewy, an online-only company. Ryan Cohen told Yahoo
“Since we started Chewy, we have been dedicated to understanding and satisfying the evolving needs of our customers to deliver the highest quality pet products and customer service. Combining our strong e-commerce expertise with PetSmart’s best-in-class infrastructure, footprint and breadth of offerings including services will help us ‘wow’ our customers even more.”
Ryan will continue to lead Chewy after closing, as the company will operate largely as an independent subsidiary of PetSmart. Hopefully, the companies will continue to prosper and to do this they must deliver the most competitive prices combined with consumer convenience.
The acquisition is said to be the biggest in e-commerce history at a cost of $3.35 billion.
How do the readers feel about the merger of PetSmart and Chewy? I hope nothing changes, service-wise, as Chewy is about as good as they come on prices and their quick shipping.
Elisa
Source 1
I used Jet.com once. NEVER again. I had a $160 order. They charged my PayPal all at once. THEN they started taking out each part of the order AGAIN just before they shipped. THEN they put the money back into PayPal upon shipment. In other words, I got to the supermarket and found my PayPal had been drained and it took a week to get it all put back. Chewy.com never did anything like that and the prices were great. Petco orders were wrong 4 times last year so I stopped ordering from them. For what I order, Chewy has been the best deal when ordering online.
Chewy announced several months ago that they intended to become “brick and mortar”, but they never revealed the method.
I used Chewy for quite some time until their prices skyrocketed. They became more expensive than Petco or Petsmart, mainly because they never offered competitive discounts. Before I left them, I inquired several times as to whether they would price match or honor competitor coupons. Their answer was always, “No”.
I love Petsmart and get continuous coupons for $5 off $25 and $10 off $40 worth of merchandise. They, truly, reward and value their customers. I am never without coupons from them.
I think that this is a very smart move for both parties. And, hopefully it will work out.
I don’t use Chewy only because they insist that deliver be at home. I can’t picture the debacle if someone left a box of pet food on my doorstep and we weren’t home. Their prices and selection are wonderful though.
I’m not sure. But we love Chewy. The cat’s go crazy when the boxes arrive. We have to get Cujo a treat so he doesn’t feel left out.
Is Banfield owned by PetSmart?
Part of the Mars, Incorporated family of companies, Banfield owns clinics in the United States, Mexico, and the United Kingdom. Founded in 1955, the company operates many of its 800 plus clinics inside PetSmart stores. Banfield is the largest privately owned veterinary practice in the United States.
It wasn’t that long ago that Banfield was supposed to acquire VCA pet hospitals. Seems to be trend in here somewhere.