Plaček hits new milestone with its 400th store

Plaček Group has opened its 400th pet store in the capital’s Lužiny shopping center. The new 400 sqm store follows the Super Zoo brand concept, launched in 2022, which allows smartphone purchases and speeds up checkout.

The retailer aims to reach 1,000 stores in 10 years and open 30 new locations within the next 12 months.

“Our priority is to complete our expansion in the Czech Republic and Slovakia, where we have managed to make the Super Zoo brand a true love brand,” says Dušan Plaček, owner and Chairman of the group.

Strategizing expansion

GlobalPETS interviewed Dušan Plaček last year. He shared that Plaček had invested €7.5 million ($83.8M) in expanding its central Prague warehouse by 10,000 sqm, bringing the total to 20,000 sqm.

This expansion is expected to meet the company’s logistical needs for the next 7 years.

“In the past, we had buffer warehouses in each country, but we are now centralizing everything in Poděbrady, which is 60 km from Prague,” he states.

Earlier this year, the company also announced plans to expand its self-service stores by launching more e-shops within the Czech, Slovak and Latvian markets.

Boosting tech capabilities

The retailer also recently appointed Luděk Kohout as the firm’s Chief IT Officer (CIO) to take over the strategic leadership of the IT department, help with the group’s digital transformation and implement technical innovations.

Kohout will be responsible for connecting IT with business strategy, automating and digitalizing processes and introducing new technologies to support business success and the security of IT systems.

Throughout his career, Kohout has successfully led IT transformations across financial consulting companies, including KPMG and Czech bank Komerční Banka.