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| Pet business shows huge potential in China |
| CCTV.COM 2003-07-22 15:07:58 |
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With the improvement of people's living standards, and a reduction in the size of many Chinese families, raising pets has become an integral and important feature in the life of many Chinese people. Consequently, the pet business has huge potential and is gradually taking shape here.
Just look at the signs on these hospital wards. You'd be forgiven for not connecting them with an animal hospital because they are almost the same as you'd find in a hospital for humans. In this ward some very special patients, puppies and kittens are receiving drip treatments and under the concerned eyes of their loving owners.
After the joining the hospital fifteen years ago, Dr. Lin Degui, is now President of the clinic. He says the rapid growth of the hospital over the past few years has been far beyond expectations.
Dr. Lin said, "Our business has been growing rapidly since 1999. The number of consulting rooms has increased from two to seven. The number of cases we receive everyday has increased from thirty something to more than seventy on average. And the fee for medical treatment and medicine on average is around 200 yuan or about 25 US dollars for each sick pet."
He revealed that the hospital's gross revenue last year reached 5.6 million yuan, about 670,000 US dollars, which makes it the largest of the more than 200 animal clinics currently operating in Beijing. Three years ago, there were only about 20 veterinary clinics in the city.
In addition to pet hospitals, many other pet－related businesses including pet beauty shops, pet boarding and pet photography have also sprung up. And of course there's pet food, pet toys, pet clothes and ornaments.
A sales staff in Carrefour said, "The average sales volume of our pet food products is about 2000 to 3,000 yuan or about 370 US dollars per day. The amount usually reaches 4000 to 5,000 on Saturdays and Sundays, even as high as 6,000 or about 740 US dollars sometimes."
Statistics show the number of registered dogs in Beijing now exceeds 137,000. If the estimated number unregistered animals are taken into account, and the large number of pet cats and birds, it is believed there are about a million household pets in the capital. With such a large population, it seems there's no limit to how far the pet products and support market can grow.
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Editor: Xiao Wei CCTV.com
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