Irvine, California – In its annual contest to select the outstanding pet industry retailer, Pet Product News International, the leading monthly trade news magazine covering the issues and trends affecting all sectors of the professional pet industry, announced Loyal Biscuit Co. as recipient of its 2013-2014 Outstanding Growth Award.Pet Product News International announced the award in the July 2013 issue of the magazine and will profile the retailer in the November 2013 edition. The overall winner and the 11 special recognition winners are each given a seat on the Pet Product News International Retail Advisory Board as part of the award program.
Loyal Biscuit Co. has enjoyed truly amazing growth during the past year, thanks to strong promotion and marketing efforts. After years in the banking industry, Heidi Vanorse Neal, along with her husband, Joel, first purchased the Rockland, Maine, store in 2010 and has since added two locations in Belfast and Camden, and business is indeed booming. Neal attributes Loyal Biscuit Co.’s success to community-based marketing efforts.
“I am a huge believer in community marketing, meaning that by us focusing our efforts on assisting local community groups, and getting our customers involved with that, our business will grow,” says Heidi Vanorse Neal. “This is a philosophy we have followed since purchasing the store in January of 2010. In our first two years, our gross sales grew by double digits. All three stores continue to increase monthly over the previous years.”
"We love the communities that we are in. The fact that we live in, do business, and walk our own dogs in the same towns as our customers, really matters to us,” says Heidi. "We love what we do," added Joel, "to be recognized like this is nothing short of amazing."
Many customers enjoy bringing their dogs (and yes, even cats!) with them when they shop, or just stop in to say hi. “Our customers are our family to us. We see them frequently and we have developed some great relationships over the last few years,” stated Heidi. Chuck, the Loyal Biscuit Co. dog, makes the rounds with Heidi between the stores and has developed some great friendships among the 4-legged fans of the LBC.
In October of 2012, the Neal’s added a toy company, Loyal Biscuit Tug ME Toy, and Heidi, along with April Thibodeau, created a treat line in 2011, Fidelis Biscuit Co., which recently was awarded Best Maine Pet Product by Downeast Dog News.
Loyal Biscuit Co. is an enormous supporter of local rescue organizations and non-profits that better the lives of pets. Their popular “Pints for Paws” event has raised over $11,000 that has been donated to local shelters. Heidi also serves on the Board of Directors for the Pope Memorial Humane Society of Knox County. The Rockland and Belfast stores serve as a satellite location for local shelters to aid in the adoption of cats and over 100 cats have found new homes in the last 18 months through this program.
The Retailer of the Year Awards were created 20 years ago to recognize retail excellence in the pet industry. Candidates are initially selected from applications distributed to retailers via the magazine, PetProductNews.com and trade shows. Retailers are then reviewed and evaluated by members of Pet Product News International’s award panel on such criteria as promotion of companion animals, involvement with professional and service organizations, innovative promotion, effective strategies in the marketplace, community and industry impact and employee training practices.
The Retailer of the Year contest is sponsored this year by World Pet Association (WPA), the oldest pet industry trade association and organizer of the annual SuperZoo trade show.
About Pet Product News International
Pet Product News International (PetProductNews.com) is the leading business news magazine covering the issues and trends affecting all sectors of the professional pet industry, including—but not limited to—retailers, manufacturers, distributors and trade associations. Pet Product News International is published by I-5 Publishing, the industry leader in consumer pet and veterinary trade publishing. You can find I-5 Publishing and its magazines on the web at AnimalNetwork.com.
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