Upscale canned products, nutritional foods, superpremium dry foods and real meat ingredients and are what today's finicky cat owners are craving for their pets.
Supermarkets are responding by expanding their cat food departments to include a wider variety, including superpremium veterinarian-type items and upscale canned goods, including pates and chowders. Many are also including a wider breadth of treats and ancillary items, such as leashes and carriers, in an effort to collar sales that would otherwise go to mass merchandisers and pet supermarkets.
Despite the inroads made by the PetsMarts of the world, supermarket retailers contacted by SN said their cat food sales continue to climb in the low single digits. This is partly attributable to the burgeoning cat population, as consumers look for low-maintenance pets to fit with their busy lifestyles. Another key point is that the owners of felines are apparently more loyal to the supermarket than their canine-owning counterparts.
There are over 66 million cats in the country, living in 31.5 million homes, or about 32% of all households, according to the Pet Industry Joint Advisory Council, a Washington-based manufacturer trade group. This figure is up from 63 million cats living in 28.3 million households, or 30% of all residences, in 1994.
"Our cat food sales are up about 4% for the latest 52 weeks," said Mike Shultz, senior vice president of Hughes Family Markets, Irwindale, Calif.
"Our combined sales for wet and dry cat food are almost even with dog food combined sales. This represents a slow, but steady, gain on dog food sales. Part of this is due to a slower leakage to alternative formats on cat as compared to dog food," he said.
"Cat food is increasing by a very small margin. There is no great growth there, but out of the other segments, it is the one showing the growth," said Emil Oles, category manager at Genuardi's Family Markets, Norristown, Pa.
Oles attributes increasing cat food sales to a rising cat population.
"Cats are a somewhat maintenance-free pet. You don't have to walk them and you can leave the food out and the cat will eat when it wants to, as opposed to a dog who will eat everything you put out," he said.
John Corcoran, category manager at Big Y Foods, Springfield, Mass., said his chain has been able to boost previously flat sales since he implemented a category management program two years ago.
One growth area has been food that can help prevent feline urinary tract infections.
"The dry food and urinary tract formulas have especially shown growth," he said, adding that he has high hopes for the new Purina O.N.E. dry cat food line.
Pat Redmond, a buyer for Spokane, Wash.-based Rosauers Supermarkets, said his sales of both dog and cat foods have been increasing 3% to 5% annually.
"That's not outstanding, but we think we can get a lot more business out of those sections if we go after it, so we're going to do that," he said.
Rosauers is looking to compete against specialty stores by expanding the cat food section and adding more large sizes.
"We're looking at premium-type cat foods and 'novelty items,' like leashes and collars. We want to expand those items," Redmond explained.
"Supermarkets can get [lost sales] back," he added.
The growth in cat food is coming from the canned and dry sectors. For the 52-week period ended Jan. 26, sales of canned cat food in supermarkets, drug stores and mass merchandisers increased 3.8% to $1.19 billion, with Nestle, Heinz and Kal Kan the top three brands, according to Information Resources Inc., Chicago. During the same period, dry cat food sales shot up 9.5% to $1.1 billion, with Ralston Purina, Nestle and private label the top three brands.
However, an 8.9% decline was seen in the semi-moist segment, where sales slid 8.9% to $49.4 million. Ralston Purina, private label and Heinz were the three largest brands.
Ruth Kinzey, corporate communications manager for Charlotte, N.C.-based Harris Teeter, said her chain has been building department sales by expanding the number of cat-related items it stocks.
"Where room permits, such as in our larger stores, additional space is provided for litter and accessory-related supplies," she explained.
She noted that as in dog food, the trend in cat food is superpremium. But she said Harris Teeter has decided to focus its attention on cat food because it is often more difficult to merchandise than dog food.
One primary reason cat food is more challenging to market than dog food is because cat owners seem to experiment less with what they feed their pets than dog owners, she said.
"By optimizing the selection of cat foods, focusing on the more popular sizes of this product and reviewing our offering of canned cat food, we are attempting to better meet the changing needs of our consumers and more effectively use the merchandising space," Kinzey explained.
Oles of Genuardi's said he is seeing growth in dry foods, especially lamb and rice formulas.
"Everybody is getting into lamb and rice because that is the keynote item of pet food right now," he said, adding that consumers are interested in products that will improve the look of the animal's coat. And while lamb and rice might appear to be more appropriate for dogs than cats, he said, the products have gained acceptance.
"The owners are buying it and making repeat purchases," Oles said.
"There has been an increase in the selection of 'superpremium' pet foods available in grocery stores," said Tera Miller, a spokeswoman for St. Louis-based Ralston Purina Co. "The hallmarks of superpremium pet foods include: healthy skin, shiny coat and smaller stools."
Angele Thompson, cat brands product development manager for Vernon, Calif.-based Kal Kan Foods, a division of Mars Corp., McLean, Va., said many of today's cat owners are looking for nutritional benefits, much as they are doing in the rest of the store.
"Is it good for skin and coat? Is it good for teeth? We are even getting to the point of looking at some of the things like diet supplements. We haven't gotten there yet because pet food is pretty stringent about what can be labeled. There are foods for urinary tracts, immune systems, things trying to help reduce some of the incidents of risk," she said, adding that foods containing "old-type remedies" are expected to become more popular in the future.
"There is a growing propensity toward obesity in animals. It is an issue because everybody is trying to look at it and I think that maybe some of the higher-fat products have contributed to it. Additionally, our lifestyles are different. More cats are inside and there is less activity," she said.
One leading private-label manufacturer, who did not wish to be identified, said private-label items are also clawing at the upscale trend.
"Being cheap is not good enough anymore. You have to offer a product that fully meets the consumer's expectations," the vendor said.
"All of the new private-label pet foods are aimed at squarely meeting the consumer's expectations. The value brands in general are not doing well, but the premium brands are doing fine," the manufacturer said.
A lot of the manufacturer's customers are improving their shelf sets, allocating more space to the 3-ounce cans. "That 3-ounce segment is amenable to growth -- if you give it enough space," he added.
In the Los Angeles area, department growth is coming from the lamb and rice formulas in dry food and "layered loaves," shredded pieces and bite-sized bits in cans said Shultz of Hughes Markets.
"Growth has been better than average in the 10-pound and up segment on dry cat food," he said, adding, "Cat food is not necessarily easier to merchandise than dog food. However, new items seem to be accepted by the consumer quicker than dog food since they are always looking for something better, because cats have more finicky eating habits than dogs."
To spur sales, Shultz said he runs "hot specials" on 5.5-ounce cans, and ties in cat treats and accessories on the displays.
"We are also lining up our schematic to run left to right on value into gourmet varieties," he said.
Big Y's Corcoran said he uses multiple-price sales features, such as four for $1, to spur sales.
"In our stores, displays are mandatory, especially when they are on sale. But we find cat food is harder to merchandise than dog food because the cans are smaller," he said.
