Interview: Emefin investment group to open 80 new pet stores in 5 countries in 2026

Lima-headquartered Emefin Group owns 575 pet stores across Europe and Latin America. Overall, this number might increase by 14% by the end of this year.

The story began with Super Zoo in Chile and Super Pet in Peru. In 2019 and 2020, the group acquired Kiwoko and Tiendanimal, bringing its total to 344 locations in Portugal and Spain. Since 2021, it owns Animalis with 104 stores in France.

Despite significant regional differences, Emefin celebrates its upward trajectory. “We are growing globally at a rate of about 15% per year,” Paul Mulder, CEO of Emefin, says in an interview with GlobalPETS.

Focus on France

According to Mulder, the group has a structured expansion plan to open 80 new stores per year across the 5 markets it operates.

Half of them are to be launched in France, since 70% of the country’s growth is being driven by store expansion. The rest is to be divided between Spain, Portugal, Peru and Chile.

In operational terms, this expansion plan adds 500 employees per year and involves developing a logistics network and training staff to be in stores.

“We don’t have a Napoleonic vision of the world where we have to go around invading and creating more countries. What we want is to be very good in the countries where we’re already serving our existing customers. And that’s our focus,” the CEO states.

Adapting to local markets

According to Mulder, each of its markets is very different in terms of consumer habits and the price levels people are willing and able to spend on their pets, which means the company must develop different strategies.

For instance, in Latin America, which accounts for 15% of Emefin’s pet business revenue, the challenge is to increase awareness of product quality, as price remains the primary shop driver in the region.

“These are much more massive markets in terms of economic product. While there is a part of the market that is indeed premiumized, there is a lot of work to be done in educating people about the difference between types of food in order that it can grow.”

In the Iberian Peninsula, on the other hand, both countries present a higher share of premium products, but the spending per pet is higher in Portugal than in Spain, the CEO says. Together, they represent 70% of the group’s pet business.

France accounts for the remaining 15%. Because it was the last country in which the group invested, it also presents the greatest potential for growth, and became the center of investments this year.

Market differentiation

One of Emefin’s aims is to place a strong emphasis on internal operations and how it delivers that value proposition to pet parents at the end of the day.

In practice, this means optimizing its assortment, with “a stronger focus on value and fast-growing trends such as cat products and wet food,” Mulder notes, rather than price.

The Peruvian group recently redesigned several key categories, including food, walking accessories, grooming products, and pet beds, and is implementing new store layouts to make it easier and faster for customers to find products.

Boost in omnichannel

On average, e-commerce represents around 20% of total sales, though this figure varies by country. It can reach 30%-40% in more digitally mature markets and remain around 10% where their e-commerce infrastructure is still not fully developed.

As a result, increasing online participation and building a logistics operation around an extensive offering and delivery capacity are priorities this year.

“We manage around 14,000 SKUs in our e-commerce and about 7,000 in our stores. As we build out that assortment and capacities to deliver, our companies will grow in this area,” he explains.

The CEO believes it is “essential” to serve customers wherever they are and to offer multiple digital options. Animalis in France, for example, has a service that allows products to be shipped directly from stores within 24 to 30 hours.

With expansion plans focused on existing markets and accelerating omnichannel investments, Emefin is betting on scale, value-added assortment and local adaptation to keep its growth trajectory.