Country report: Ireland Offline sales are still in the lead despite promising e-commerce trends

The Emerald Isle is home to an estimated 355,000 cats (up from some 325,000 pre-pandemic) and just under half a million dogs (up from about 450,000 pre- pandemic), according to Euromonitor International. Despite a cost-of-living crisis that is chiefly impacting low-income families, pet owners are sparing no expense when it comes to providing for their animal companions.

Boom in an already strong market

In 2022, Irish pet parents spent an estimated €239.3 million ($255.9M) on looking after their animals. According to Euromonitor, €158 million ($169M) was splashed out on pet food and a further €81 million ($86.6M) on various pet care and leisure products. This marks a boom in an industry that has gone from strength to strength in the past 5 years.

While market growth had already been rising steadily between 2017 and 2019, the COVID-19 pandemic created an insatiable public demand for pets, resulting in unusually high levels of growth across the industry… and the rise continues.

In 2020, the pet food market in Ireland grew by 4.3% with a yearly expenditure of €155 million ($165.8M) on pet food (up from €148M / $158.3M in 2019). Pet food sales plateaued in 2021, then grew again last year by an estimated 2.1%. Even more strikingly, consumer spending on non-food pet items increased by 8.2% to €80 million ($85.6M) in 2020 (€6M / $6.4M more than in 2019). This section of the market shrank slightly in 2021, before returning to rude health in 2022 with around 4% growth.

Preference for bricks-and-mortar stores

Most Irish people buy the food for their pets in bricks- and-mortar supermarkets such as Tesco Ireland, Supervalu and Dunnes Stores, according to Brendan McLoughlin, General Manager at Mars Ireland.

Specialist pet trade outlets, which number about 200 in Ireland, are the second most popular option. This market mostly consists of medium-sized and large chains such as Maxi Zoo (29 stores), Petmania (15 stores) and Petworld (10 stores), along with some privately owned individual stores. Maxi Zoo opened a number of new stores in Ireland last year and Petworld is also said to be looking to expand. In Cork alone – a relatively small city with a population of 222,000 – there are more than 20 pet stores.

Rise of e-commerce

It is believed that only 14% of pet parents are currently buying pet food online, but e-commerce revenue in Ireland is rising, according to Nestlé research. Statista reports that online sales of pet food in the country accounted for €3.8 million ($4.1M) in 2022, with that figure expected to jump to €5.6 million ($6M) this year and more than double to €12.4 million ($13.3M) by 2027.

McLoughlin notes that e-commerce “drives the most absolute growth” in the pet food market and the post- pandemic growth continues to be in double digits. Amazon and Zooplus are currently the biggest online players in Ireland. While the importance of the online operations of local retailers is said to be increasing, “nothing has dropped in terms of footfall because people are still after the experience in the store,” according to another senior retail insider.

Local manufacturers

The main local pet food producers are C&D Foods (part of the ABP Group), the Co. Kilkenny-based Connolly’s Red Mills, Irish Dog Foods Ltd (part of the Queally Group) and Linhurst Manufacturing in Navan, Co. Meath. Linhurst makes natural pet treats, mostly for export to mainland Europe, the US, Canada and the UK.

With only a handful of manufacturers of pet-related products in Ireland, pet food is imported into the country from all over the world. In 2021, €140 million ($149.7M) worth of pet food imports (in wholesale value) reached Irish shores, mainly from the UK (almost €40M / $42.8M), Germany (nearly €18M / $19.2M) and other European countries, according to Ireland’s Central Statistics Office (CSO). Exports from China accounted for €10.4 million ($11.1M).

Optimistic forecast

The Irish pet food market is expected to grow by 5.45% annually in the next 5 years, according to Statista. Joanne McKenna, Category Country Manager at Nestlé Purina PetCare Ireland, predicts that online sales and subscriptions will continue to increase in the long term. Pet food is “one of the least likely categories that shoppers will spend less on,” she adds.

Despite inflation, premium products are also seen as an opportunity. Although some lower-income families are taking up economy options amid the cost-of- living crunch, the mid-market is in decline, creating many new possibilities to launch premium pet care ranges in Ireland.

However, if the costs of raw materials and energy keep rising, then “the premium end of the market could fall backward, as owners won’t be able to afford the food,” cautions Nigel Baker, CEO of the UK-based Pet Industry Federation. Other industry sources point out that Ireland faces an extra challenge due to the ever-increasing cost of transporting goods from overseas.