POULSBO — Kingston’s Country Pet Shoppe owner Stephanie Stebbing said she always figured a large corporation pet store would find its way into North Kitsap.
All the same, when she first heard the news of a Petco planned for Poulsbo’s College Market Place, she had to take a moment to collect her heart from its proverbial drop to the floor.
There are few worse realizations for small business owners than the one including the imminent arrival of a large chain competitor, but Stebbing, once recovered from her initial shock, actually wasn’t too worried.
“When it comes to us little guys competing with big guys like that, it certainly has an impact,” she said. “All in all, I do feel confident that the great customers we have had all along the way will continue to support us.”
Stebbing isn’t alone in her thinking, as Superior Pet Foods owner Denise Stadtler said the opening of large box stores usually attracts a curious initial crowd. After a few months, consumers return to their tried and true places of business, she said.
“They want to check out the new stores,” she said. “We’re not expecting a big problem… There’s a large group of people that really don’t like those box stores. We meet that niche.”
Stadtler said Superior Pet Foods in Poulsbo Village has been in business for nearly two decades, and survived the opening of a PetSmart in Silverdale with relative ease. Because of the high-quality offerings, customers travel from as far as Bremerton to shop Superior Pet Foods’ wares. Larger stores like Petco don’t offer the specialty items her store does, she said.
Stebbing, too, offers specialty items, including holistic all-natural foods and locally-raised animals, that chains simply can’t provide.
“We’re able to offer a selection not found in larger stores,” she said. “If there’s not little stores like us, then those products stop becoming available.”
Stebbing also said the assumption of box stores having lower prices is often untrue.
“Our prices tend to be pretty comparable,” she said. She also noted the ability small business owners have in connecting with their staffs and creating a personable, helpful work environment that is flexible with the demands of daily life, as employees often tend to be working mothers or students.
“Family is the No. 1 priority, and school is No. 2, and work comes some place after that,” she said. “That’s something that we offer in the community that you don’t get with large corporate employers.”
Joel Wilbur, architect for Madison Development Group, Inc., the developer for the Petco project, said the store is expected to open around the second quarter of next year, though that plan hinges on the permitting process.
“We’re targeting construction to start, if all goes well, January or February,” he said. “If it happens sooner, great.”
Opening will be based on the construction start time, but he expects the structure to be completed four to five months after building begins.
Greater Poulsbo Chamber of Commerce executive director Stuart Leidner said while large corporations often affect family operations, it is customer service and quality products that are key to running any business, big or small.
“People are going to be looking for products, customer service, and obviously price is going to have an impact on them,” he said.
Though box stores offer wide appeal, the niche small stores cater to can’t often be penetrated by chains, and he expects locally-owned pet shops to successfully co-exist with Petco, due in large part to their specified products.
“Customer service will always be different there,” he said of smaller stores. “They obviously have a very specialized market.”
