Amazon launches Prime-exclusive pet care private label
Amazon has debuted a private label for pet care called Wag, comprising “all the essentials for your best furry friends,” the e-commerce giant says on its website.
Currently consisting of nine types of dry dog food, the brand will expand to include more pet supplies over time, Amazon assured on the private label’s page. Products can only be purchased through the Amazon Prime membership program, which, beginning May 11, will cost US$119 annually for subscribers in the U.S.
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The new brand’s name comes from Amazon’s acquisition of Quidsi and its e-commerce properties in 2011 for US$545 million, all of which were shut down last spring. Wag.com was one of those properties.
A report from market research firm Packaged Facts, says Amazon sees pet products as a “top category of interest,” declaring it as such several years ago. That interest is not expected to die down anytime soon: In another report, the firm estimates that Amazon’s pet product sales hit $2 billion in 2016, a 40% year-over-year rise. Wag will only drive that number higher.
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“Pet products are among the fastest-growing online retail categories and Amazon is leading the way,” says David Sprinkle, research director for Packaged Facts. “The scariest part for competitors is that recent news indicates the e-commerce juggernaut is still coming on strong and unabated in the U.S. pet industry, reaffirming its commitment to pet products and now pet food.”
Despite PetSmart’s 2017 acquisition of Chewy.com, which the report says gave the retailer an “admirable jump,” Amazon topped the list of leading websites for pet-product purchases, Packaged Facts Q1 2018 National Pet Owner Survey revealed. The Seattle-based company attracted 55% of those who purchased pet products via e-commerce, followed by Chewy at 26%, PetSmart at 19%, Petco at 17%, and Walmart/Sam’s Club at 14%.
This article appeared at ProgressiveGrocer.com.