18 minute read
• Q&A Interview: Shari White, Petco, The Health + Wellness Co
Shari White, SVP Merchandising— Consumables, Petco, The Health + Wellness Co.
Tell us how your career path led you to the pet industry?
I grew up very passionate about animals. I wanted all the pets as a kid. We had a family dog that I begged for for a long time; I had fish, I had birds, I had hamsters, I had gerbils, all the things. Just because of that I grew up wanting to be a veterinarian. That was a really big part of who I was as a person. When I got to college it was pretty clear to me, fairly quickly, pre-med was not the path that I was going to take. No, I’m not going to be a veterinarian. I felt much more comfortable in business classes and economics and statistics. I pivoted away from the dream of becoming a veterinarian. I’ve always been really interested in human behavior and animal behavior and that’s what led me into my first job out of college, which was market research.
My first role was at information resources onsite at Frito-Lay, and for me that was a fun way to get into the business world in a space where I could still be learning about consumers, consumer behavior and how people make decisions. That was a really nice way for me to tie in what I’m passionate about with a business career. That job led me into learning about CPG marketing. Working for some of the marketers at Frito-Lay was phenomenal because they were very talented people. I came to love the consumer product world, and that is why I decided to go back to business school so that I could pivot into brand management. I loved the research side but to be honest it wasn’t entirely fulfilling for me because I knew I was making recommendations, I was influencing decisions, but ultimately, I wasn’t the decision maker. I wanted to be driving the bus. That’s why I decided to go to business school for marketing, and I was at Kellogg for two years full time. I interned for Unilever in between my two years; I had an amazing experience there and decided to go back there full time after business school. As a marketer, I was thinking about my brand, my brand, my brand, but I wasn’t thinking about that impactful moment of the shopping moment. I became curious about retail, and I ended up doing a shopper marketing role at Unilever and started to explore that space.
It was around that same time that Target reached out to me out of the blue and asked if I was interested in being a buyer, which I had not considered at all. The opportunity at Target was interesting A) because I respected them a ton as a marketer just based on what a strong marketing organization they were and the amazing brand they had built. B) I was intrigued that I could build a career in one place and have a lot of opportunity to learn and grow and develop within a company that was all based in Minneapolis. And I also was excited about the idea of learning more about retail. At the end of the day, there was a lot of parallels between how the marketer at a CPG company is the hub and the merchant at a retailer is the hub. There’s a lot of parallels in terms of the work that gets done. It felt like a really natural shift for me, and when I moved to Target, that is when I fell in love with retail and realized I truly am a merchant. That is what I am through and through. For me that’s when I realized that retail is a true passion for me. It’s very dynamic. I love the pace. I love the scope of thinking about categories. That’s what led me to retail.
Over time I worked in different categories at Target. I had a passion for all of them, but when the opportunity came up at Petco, it was a culmination of I can work for a company where I can do what I love as a merchant, but I can do it in the pet industry which I have had such a passion for ever since I was a kid about doing what’s best for pets. It became ‘Is this a real thing? I actually get to do this?’ That’s what led me to join Petco and it’s been a really phenomenal five years.
You’ve mentioned in the past that one of the more fulfilling aspects of working in the pet industry, and at Petco in particular, is the strong support of the human-animal bond. What else about the pet industry that makes working in it fulfilling?
I’ve always been passionate about my work. It’s just the kind of person I am. I’ve cared a lot about the businesses I’ve run in the past. I’ve been in the hair care category, bedding, school supplies, greeting cards, you name it. I’ve always been passionate about them, but what I found about the pet industry is that the emotional connection that I have to this industry is very different than how I’ve ever felt about categories I’ve worked in before. Ultimately for me, that comes back to being a lifelong animal lover, being a pet rescue supporter, being a mom of several rescued pets throughout my lifetime. It means a lot to me to be working for a company that shares my values around animal welfare, that authentically cares about doing what’s best for pets, and so for me, what makes this industry even more fulfilling than industries I’ve worked in in the past is that. It’s that emotional connection that I feel that a lot of people who work in this industry feel. It’s just a little bit different because the way we love our pets is so meaningful to us, that it just gives the work that extra meaning for me that I haven’t experienced that kind of connection although I’ve been passionate about the work before, I haven’t experienced that kind of connection to it in the past. That’s what gives it that extra bit of meaning which is really awesome.
What aspect of your work ethic has helped you to become successful?
What fuels my success is a very high level of accountability and a willingness to acknowledge I have areas of opportunities and I absolutely make mistakes and I don’t know everything. That willingness to show vulnerability, to show humanity, has fueled my ability to learn and develop and therefore, advance throughout my career. A lot of people work hard and that’s really important. I work hard. But there’s that extra level of acknowledging we’re all a work in process and we all have things that we’ve r Cont'd on Pg. 44
r From Pg. 42 not done quite as well as we wish we would have. I’ve had to say, ‘That wasn’t my finest moment, and I’m sorry about that. I was frustrated, I was stressed out in the moment,’ and I’m willing to acknowledge that because none of us are perfect. That has helped me advance because I learn faster because of that.
How have your experiences informed your industry leadership— several of your stops have been at more forward-thinking retailers.
I’ve been incredibly lucky to learn from some of the most talented people in some very talented organizations like Unilever and Target. I probably learned more about leading teams at Target than anywhere else in my career. They really invest in training and forming really great leaders. For them, what I learned at Target, it’s very much about the business results, of course, but it’s not just about the what that you do, it’s equally as much about how you do it, how you lead your team, how you get the results. It’s not good enough to get the results if the way you’re getting the results is de-motivating for people and crushing your team. That’s not OK. I really benefited from role models and training in top tier organizations that have helped me understand there is equal importance on both. That’s hugely motivating for me as well. It’s one of the things that I said earlier; I’m fulfilled by leading teams and coaching and developing people and seeing them succeed. When you work for organizations that don’t just say that, but they really practice it and they invest behind it, it really makes the difference. It’s motivating and that has shaped me a lot as a leader in terms of how I coach my own leaders on my team to become leaders themselves. That had a major influence on how I grew up as a leader. The really cool thing about having come from a combination of backgrounds, both the brand management side as well as the retail side, is that I understand and value and appreciate the importance of both. The importance of building a category, growing the business in total but also respecting brands and the equity of those brands and how important those brands are to consumers. I have a unique perspective as a merchant having come from that brand building background that allows me to think about and balance both—the building of brands and the building of categories. That’s one of the things that’s different for me than maybe some of my peers, having come from that background. It helps to have had a seat at the table in those different roles. You can really emphasize and understand what matters to those people. So now as a merchant when I’m working with manufacturers, I have a good understanding of what matters to them and what metrics they’re measured on and how they’re looking to grow and how we can mutually work together to drive a successful business.
In our past conversations, you’ve mentioned one of your proudest achievements thus far was guiding Petco toward eliminating artificial ingredients from the products you carry. Has there been something new to supersede that since?
That was a big moment and when we made that announcement in late 2018, it was a big bold move. And the reality is I was doing it in an environment where my business was struggling. The consumables business at Petco wasn’t healthy in 2018. When we made that decision, that was one step in the journey of what we think is going to be a big turnaround of this business. But it wasn’t the whole journey. Since then, we’ve made a lot of changes to our pricing strategy, to our loyalty strategies, to our assortment, to the way we merchandise, to the way we develop an omnichannel experience for our consumers. The way we use data to inform and fuel how all of that works together. It’s been a lot of work to just really change the way we go to market and show up for consumers in this category. While that move in 2018 was exciting, public and motivating, what’s been even more satisfying for me is seeing the impact of all of the changes and then the many others I’ve talked about and how those have impacted our business and turned around our sales and turned around our customer growth. To me that is truly the big accomplishment. It’s been a full turnaround of the business. We’ve been gaining share in the market for the last year and a half or so. That’s amazing to see. In spite of the fact we took all of these brands out of the assortment, we have been able to together with all of these other activities to really turn around and drive this business to be healthy and successful.
We’re not just selling products. We’re educating consumers on how to be better pet parents and how to do better for their pets. It’s awesome to see the impact on the consumer, the impact on pets and then of course the impact on the business. Every pet parent thinks they’re doing right. They really want to do right and so it’s an important part of how we train our PCC partners, is that pet parents really earnestly want to do the best thing for their pets and so it’s never about judging their decisions, and just more about providing education. We have partners in our stores that are not just passionate but trained and educated and really earnestly engaged in helping pet parents figure out what is right for their pet because the reality is it’s not a one size fits all solution for all pets. Every pet is different like every person is different. Our partners like Petco to invest in talking to pet parents about their pets and really taking the time to help them figure out what does your pet need and how can we make life better for you and your pet together, and that is very unique to pet specialty.
How would you describe the current state of the pet industry?
In a lot of ways I would say it’s been accelerating in terms of the way consumers feel so passionate about the role pets play in their lives. It’s been that way for quite some time. Before I joined Petco, pet parents were passionate about their pets and the roles they play in their lives. It’s been accelerating and then you take Covid and the experience that so many people had being isolated from the world, pets played an even bigger role in the mental health of so many humans during that time period for companionship, for emotional support, for connection, for warmth and affection. That moment in time even further accelerated how pet parents see pets as a critical part of their family and a critical part of their mental
r From Pg. 44 health. That’s the biggest difference in the last few years is it’s just accelerating how we think about our pets and the roles they play in our lives.
What is the role of pet specialty retailers in the pet industry? Why is it important to facilitate a community of pet owners to promote education and the pet/pet parent bond?
What’s really unique about pet specialty is the education that we bring to pet owners that most retail does not and cannot. This is what we do all day long, 24 hours a day seven days a week, is live and breathe what’s best for pets. You can come to a Petco and understand and learn about what’s best for your pet in a way that you can’t in most other retail environments. Why is that important? Pet parenting is hard. Pets are hard. They’re stressful, they’re scary, they can’t talk to you about what’s wrong with them, there’s training challenges, there’s potty challenges, there’s health challenges. It’s stressful and it’s hard and what we don’t want to see is pet parents give up and surrender pets. The role of pet specialty is crucial in helping pet parents solve very real challenges with their pets with the ultimate goal of making sure those pets stay in loving homes and have good lives. We are able to provide a service there that is unique to a lot of retailers that hold themselves to their pet products. We really are solution focused and education focused and that helps pet parents address challenges that they wouldn’t otherwise be able to address whether it’s a training challenge, a behavioral issue, a health problem; we’re equipped with what they need.
What do you attribute to Petco’s continued success?
For me it’s a simple answer: it’s the people and the purpose. That’s why Petco is successful. Our team is amazing both in the support centers and out in the field in our 1,500 pet care centers. The people at Petco are so talented and so driven and so passionate about what they do, it really fuels the company. It’s all tied to a purpose. The partners at Petco genuinely care about the mission and the purpose of the organization and because of that they take that energy, they take that passion, they take their skills and they put it to work in a way that is always striving to make the company better. And so it is truly a unique place in that regard.
The company has really been aggressive in searching out new formats and partnerships—how are things progressing with Reddy SoHo and the Lowe’s partnership?
Really well. Reddy SoHo has exceeded expectations. We love that store. I would say it’s a great representation of the Reddy brand. To be in SoHo around consumers who are out with their dogs all the time and experiencing life with their dogs, that’s what the Reddy brand is all about. It’s about how do we give you what you need to be out experiencing life with your pet on that journey. SoHo is a place where pet parents have really bought into that and really want to be able do that. The brand connects with that environment but also the partners in that store have connected with the community in SoHo. I was there earlier this week, and we visited the Reddy store—I was only in the store for half an hour and while I was there, there were three pets that came in that are “regulars in the store.” They came in for their little puppaccino and treats. The store has really become a part of the local community which is exactly what we had hoped would be the case. It’s been really phenomenal to see, and we are hopeful there will be more Reddy locations in the future because we think that brand really does resonate with so many consumers and we’re really excited about the future for Reddy.
On the Lowe’s front, we’re really happy with the results we’ve seen so far. The research we’ve done suggests there’s a lot of mutual benefits for Lowe’s and Petco in that model. We’re continuing to explore what that could look like in the future.
What is the impression that Petco wants its staff to leave on pet owners during and after they visit a Petco store?
The most important thing we want shoppers to leave a Petco care center feeling is trust. Trust that Petco truly cares about what’s best for you and your pets. Trust that we have the expertise to help you figure out what that is. Trust that we have the products and services that will fulfill those needs. That is the most important thing we want pet parents to know. Trust that we’re not selling you anything. We don’t sell anything in our stores that we don’t genuinely believe is good for pets. That’s why we removed artificial ingredients from our shelves. Trust that when you come to a Petco, we have your and your pets’ best interests in mind, and we are going to do everything we can to help you get what you need to improve the wellbeing of your pet and strengthen that connection and give you more years with your pet. That’s the goal.
How would you characterize the pet owners who shop at Petco?
I would say they are engaged pet parents. Pet parents who have a problem and need help solving it or are just trying to figure out how to do more, do better for their pets. We have a consumer segmentation that we use to guide how we assort products, how we go to market, how we communicate. Our core target we call the adoring nurturer, and that consumer is the one that really does want to do the best for their pet. They really believe in the importance of products and services that help amplify the health of their pet and they do research to understand what the best products and services to use are. And so we really want to make sure we are speaking to that consumer who is looking for the best. That said, it’s important to acknowledge that doesn’t necessarily mean they have to spend a lot of money. We understand that a lot of pet parents are—especially in today’s world in the inflationary environment—looking for ways to save money. It’s important to us at Petco that we make pet parenthood and pet health and wellness easy and affordable and achievable for all pet parents. We make sure our stores represent all the needs of pets at every budget. The guests that shop at Petco ultimately share a desire to do what’s best for their pets. They’re looking for answers for solutions for education and support. But they need to be able to do that regardless of what the budget looks like. We want to make sure that we are speaking to the needs of all of those pet parents.
Pet owners are not content to just throw their dog a bone. They want their animal to enjoy premium health and wellness products that rival those made for humans. Many provide the best care for their pet without breaking the bank by reaching for store brands. Over the last 52 weeks, store brand pet care sales grew 7.3% in dollar sales to $4.2 billion, making it one of the leading trends at PLMA’s 2022 Private Label Trade Show.
The two-day show is spread out in separate halls so that exhibitors can be found more easily. Health and beauty, household goods, kitchenware and general merchandise are located in the South Hall. Food, snacks, beverages, refrigerated and frozen products are in the North, South and Sky Halls. Retailers, join us at PLMA’s 2022 Private Label Trade Show to see how store brand suppliers are responding with innovation in every food and non-food category, including pet care.
