Family-owned Wildwood Pets, based in the Lincolnshire market town of Stamford, has been named Independent Retailer of the Year 2024 in the prestigious PIF Awards. Owner Thomas Rogerson, who runs the store alongside wife Laura, reveals the secrets of the company’s success.

What does winning this award mean to you and your team?
Winning this award means the world to myself and my team. Getting a business off the ground is difficult, and this proves to us that all the hard work we have done has come to fruition and has been recognised.

Thomas and Laura receiving their PIF Award from Peter Brame and Rachael Bradshaw of sponsors Vital Pet Products.

Why do you think you won this prestigious award?
We are still in a little bit of shock to be honest. We were up against some amazing independents and all of which are more established than we are. We managed to speak to a judge briefly, but they gave little away. I believe the presentation of the store, ethos and customer service came across very well. Although all of our team are currently part-time we work hard with them on product training to ensure everyone that comes through the door has access to tailored and good advice. Therefore, when the mystery shop part of the process happened I was comfortable with whoever they dealt with on our team they got the best service and with a smile.

How long has Wildwood Pets been open?
The store is still less than a year old. We opened the branch in January 2024. The company was formed back in April of last year and we started very small, from our garage with around 400 lines and a website, whilst we looked for the right premises in the right location which took a while. Stamford is an amazing town and the support for independent shops is incredible. We have an amazing high street pet shop here too so we wanted to have a unit which was on the edge of town, slightly larger, very accessible and plenty of parking which can be an issue in quaint market towns.

Who owns the business?
Fully family owned and run. My wife Laura Brooke-Rogerson and I are the directors of the company. My father-in-law Robert Brooke and I are shareholders.

What are your backgrounds?
We are animal people through and through. I have experience in pet retail, around a decade in both chains and other independents. Most recently I was a district manager of a chain overseeing 5 stores. Before that I was a lecturer for Animal Management courses at a college, Education Presenter at a zoological park and worked with the Wildlife Trusts. Laura has worked in vet practices, been a volunteer dog trainer with an assistance dog charity and is a qualified Clinical Canine Massage Therapist. We met at university when I was studying Zoology, and she was doing Animal Science. 

What made you become pet product retailers?
I think it was a childhood dream of mine. One of my first ever jobs as a teenager was at a great independent and I can remember thinking about if I was to run my own what I would do, what I would stock etc. That came back around again in my previous role. Although I enjoyed my time at Pets Corner I was restricted in doing things their way. When it came time to move on I thought it was time to see if I could actually do it myself.

How many members of staff are there?
I am only the full-time member of staff, but I hope that will change as we grow. Laura comes in as and when needed, alongside raising our two wonderful daughters, but arguably puts more time in than I do with the social media and website. We currently have four fantastic part-time members of staff – Iona, Francesca, Emily and Kate – and one work experience student Willow, who has just joined us.

What makes you different from your competitors?

Firstly, the staff. When hiring we made it clear in any job ads that experience and qualifications were great, but it would come down to passion and willingness to jump into the unknown with us. Iona and Francesca have been with us from opening and interviewed in a completely empty space but could see our vision. All of them are passionate, knowledgeable and build relationships with customers. I also used my years of experience to plan out our space thoroughly. We have a dedicated space for trying on harnesses and coats, ramps so it is accessible for all and a spacious store to allow customers with dogs to shop comfortably. We have a relaxed atmosphere with background music, an attractive entrance and even kids trolleys so families are well catered for.

How do you attract and retain customers?
We rely heavily on word of mouth, although not our only marketing. The money saved on larger marketing campaigns we make sure we constantly revise our product ranges to suit our customer base and new additions to the pet product market. When customers shop with us, we want it to be an experience that is very important to us. They then pass that onto their friends and family.

How involved do you get in the local community?

We try to, when possible, work with the local pet community. We have a large noticeboard space for local pet businesses, and we are working with several people and groups to host various days and events on site. That is the benefit of a larger store. Alongside raising funds, we are a drop off point for physical donations for three local animal charities and rescues too.

How important is your website and social media?
Very! Social media is a great tool for connecting with your customer base and having a practical and attractive website backs that up. It is one of Laura’s main roles. It can help reach a wider audience than other forms of marketing at a much lower cost.

What’s the secret of your success?
Passionate pet-orientated staff, a lot of hard work and ethics. I had a very particular vision when building this business. Myself and my family painted all the walls, built all the racking, stocked the shelves and spent hours researching the right products. We are particular in what we will and won’t stock. We set ourselves strict rules from making sure particular ingredients aren’t in any of our food and treats to only holding certain shaped harnesses. A big part of staff training is explaining why we don’t stock certain products, but we never talk down any product or business, we just state our research findings. That comes across very well to most customers.

What advice would you give other independent pet retailers?
Don’t feel like you need the big-name brands if you don’t believe they are the right thing for your store or your customers. There are so many different products out there, often made by great little companies, and something different from the local big chain or supermarket will win you more customers than you might lose.

How do you see your business developing over future years?
Hopefully to grow our community connections and work with more local businesses. We have space to host smaller events and displays which we love doing. We also want to get out a bit more, such as local fairs and shows, to get our name out there. Recently we expanded our shop floor space to open a new raw room to house our freezers. There is another space which is currently unoccupied so we are weighing up adding possible pet service too. I am also very passionate about exotic pets and want to develop a space more tailored to that. Finally, we want to review our ranges with fresh eyes and most up-to-date research to see how we can improve further.

Find out more at https://www.wildwoodpets.com