Recruitment specialist Lynda Ward, of Pet Trade Solutions, says that salaries in the industry are becoming a major concern with employees.

"Small start-ups cannot afford the experienced staff they need to grow their sales and experienced employees are ever-more dissatisfied with current salaries," says Lynda.

"My hopes for the New Year are threefold. I want to see the pet industry continuing to prosper, fewer animals being ill-treated or needing rehoming and, finally, that fireworks will be banned or restricted to one night only, so reducing the suffering of many pets and wildlife. 

"I feel that the biggest challenges for both food and accessory producers in the industry will be increased competition and a need for real innovation. Food producers will also be challenged with the increasing cost and scarcity of raw materials.

"And if I had to give independent retailers some advice it would be to offer something extra or different, such as holding ‘puppy days’ or ‘meet a dog trainer day’. And,  most of all, build customer rapport and hang in there!"