Unique Shopping Experience

At Pretentious Pooch, a Baltimore dog store, I strive to offer customers a unique shopping experience, but this is not as easy as it sounds.  Further, I often question whether I'm doing my customers a service.

I like to to find the odd and unique items that our Baltimore shoppers can't find just anywhere.  But with manufacturer representatives making rounds to every pet shop in town I find that good products often materialize at other stores.  A manufacturer's rep. told me yesterday, "There is no such thing as exclusivity."

The other issue I struggle with is, when we find a great product, do we keep carrying it for a long time or switch it out so our customers have a variety when shopping and a reason to keep coming back.

For right now, our store philosophy is to offer our shoppers a unique shopping experience.  So, we monitor our product lines closely.  We are constantly looking for products that are not found elsewhere.  As soon as we see that the product is being sold at other stores, we drop the line and look for another.  Products that our customer love we keep longer but if they are found at our competitors, their life here is numbered.

What do you think?  Am I running the store as you would like it to be ran?

Tom Berger
Pretentious Pooch
Baltimore Pet Store
1017 Cathedral Street
Baltimore, MD 21201
443-524-7777
www.pretentiouspooch.com

Comments

[Beulah's mom]

Tom-
I adore your store! I think your idea of bringing new "exclusive" products is great. It allows me to have new items for my dog. And I trust that you have done the research and Chai has "tested" the product and given her "paw of approval". I would like to suggest that you keep the "regular" line of products that people use everyday (poopie bags, shampoo, etc) those things are staples in our house! But if I wanted "regular" stuff, I could go to Superfresh or PetSmart! I don't, I come to you!