Petco Animal Supplies, a specialty retailer of animal food and supplies,
Tuesday acquired the assets of petopia.com, its online e-commerce partner.
Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
The union combines the strengths of the individual operations while
passing rewards on to the customers in the form of better selection,
services and prices, noted Brian DeVine, Petco CEO, president and chairman.
“Over the last year and a half, Petco has developed a cost-effective
procurement and fulfillment system to serve the e-commerce channel,” he
said. “Our acquisition of Petopia.com’s assets expands on Petco’s existing
capabilities to serve its Internet customers. There has already been a
significant shakeout among the pet industry e-commerce players and we are
well positioned to take advantage of the opportunity.”
The two companies had been affiliated since petopia.com launched in the
summer of 1999. Petopia also has partnerships with other heavy hitters, such
as NBC, ValueVision International and America Online.
Additionally, the etailer has standing relationships with The American
Society for the Prevention of Cruelty of Animals, Petfinder.org, the
Animal Cancer Center, the Argus Center, Veterinary Medicine
Publishing/Thomson Healthcare, Pethealth Inc. as well as a variety of
suppliers of quality pet products and services.
