Jun 1-7
OPERATIONS This week marks the start of hurricane season for 2025, but as you know disasters can happen year-round. Go through your emergency preparedness plans and update as needed. The U.S. Small Business Association offers resources here.
Jun 8-14
ANIMAL CARE For those of you with pets in-store — whether residents or for sale — follow the lead of Victor Santucci of Garden State Pet Center in Audubon, NJ. He creates guidelines for staff that cover monitoring animals for signs of heat stress so that temperature and/or humidity levels can be adjusted. This advice also can be applied to customer pets, who may come in overheated during higher temps. Build a products display that also serves as a cooling station, with demo cooling pads on the floor and water ready to serve. And include signage that lets customers know you’ll help them find the right size boots for their pups.
Jun 15-21
MAINTENANCE Another summer to-do: Check in on your freezers. “I like to clean out the freezers before the hottest part of the year to avoid freezer burn and ice buildup,” shares Taylor England of Earthwise Pet Lake Nona in Orlando, FL. Follow up with professional maintenance for optimal equipment performance and lifespan. And ensure your temperature monitors/alarms are working properly — it’s the wrong time of year to have a freezer fail and not know it.
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Jun 22-28
FOR SALE Do you have extra or slow-moving stock you want to move before discontinuing? Equipment you no longer need? Fixtures collecting dust in your back room? What isn’t working for you may work for another indie. In the PETS+ Community on Facebook, you can post items for sale or request items to buy. Such posts have worked quite well in the past, helping to move everything from small batches of toys and collars to double-door freezers and a treat truck! Join at facebook.com/groups/petsplusmagcommunity.
Jun 29-Jul 5
INVENTORY MANAGEMENT About this week, Molly Lewis of Dog River Pet Supplies in Hood River, OR, points out, “It’s the end of the quarter, so it’s good practice to be sure all credits are received and coupons or promotions are submitted to manufacturers for credit.” Ruth Sturgis of Dog Daze in North Syracuse, NY, says, “We take a long hard look at inventory: what is selling, what has slowed down and why, any hot new item on the horizon. It’s a good time to judge business for the first half of the year and then make any necessary adjustments for the rest of the year.”
Jul 6-12
BUYING It’s time to start planning for SUPERZOO, happening Aug. 13-15 in Las Vegas, NV. Shane Somerville of Paddywack in Mill Creek, WA, says, “In July, I am focused on SUPERZOO prep. I go through the full list of vendors and create a spreadsheet (organized by booth number) of everyone I want to visit, along with notes on individual booths.” Katherine Ostiguy of Crossbones in Providence, RI, adds that she reaches out “to smaller brands to ask if they’ll have a booth, so I know whether or not to look for them. If they’re not going, it’s an opportunity to ask about mailed samples, ISOs, etc.” And Ostiguy also makes time for learning at the show. “I review the seminars and enter all of the ones I am interested in as events on my Google Calendar, even if they overlap. As I get closer to the event, I whittle it down and come up with my final schedule.”
Jul 13-19
PLANNING No matter your business type, the third quarter means it’s time to prepare for the busy fourth quarter. April Meier of Pawsitively Scrumptious Bark Bakery & Boutique in Crestview, FL, says, “We start prepping for our fourth-quarter sales and ordering anything that we did not already pre-book for the holiday season.” And it’s never too early to remind grooming and boarding clients that appointments and reservations for holiday weeks need to be made much sooner rather than later.
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Jul 20-26
SELF-CARE Have you taken a vacation yourself this summer? Even if it’s just a short staycation at a local resort, book time to unplug from your business as much as possible to unwind. Your future self — and your business — will thank you.
Jul 27-Aug 2
STAFFING If you employ college students, check in to see when they’ll be coming back to school and how many hours their schedule will allow. These “seasonal” employees reduce training time significantly as they already understand how your business operates and your expectations. Simply provide a check-in session to cover any changes since last semester.
