YCD News – According to the newly released 2023-2024 National Pet Owner Survey by the American Pet Products Association (APPA), 66% of U.S. households now have at least one pet, with the number of pet owners among Gen Z and Millennials equal to Gen X and Baby Boomers for the first time.
Divided Pet Supply Consumers
According to the report, the pet ownership rate among Millennial and Gen Z consumers has steadily increased over the past five years, with Gen Z pet ownership rising from 11% in 2018 to 16% in 2022 and Millennial pet ownership rising from 31% in 2018 to 33% in 2022.
Meanwhile, the pet ownership rates of Baby Boomers and Generation X have declined. the pet ownership rate of Generation X declines from 26% in 2018 to 25% in 2022, and the pet ownership rate of Baby Boomers declines from 29% in 2018 to 24% in 2022.
In addition to the divergence in age, the U.S. pet consumer population also diverges in terms of pet ownership categories and spending levels.
YCD learned that in 2022, 50% of U.S. households will have at least one dog and 35% will have at least one cat. Younger people have relatively more dogs, while older consumers have a closer proportion of cats and dogs.
The data shows that 17% of Gen Z consumers own dogs and 15% own cats. Among Gen Xers, the dog ownership rate is 24% and the cat ownership rate is 25%. Among Baby Boomers, the dog ownership rate is 22% and the cat ownership rate is 23%.
In terms of spending on pet supplies, overall, the majority of pet owners (46%) kept their pet spending the same between 2021 and 2022.
Among those reducing spending, Millennials will see the fastest decline in spending in the last two years, with 17 percent expected to reduce spending in 2022 compared to 8 percent in 2020, followed by Generation X (12 to 18 percent). Baby boomers also report more spending declines, increasing from 6 percent in 2020 to 11 percent in 2022, with Gen Z spending declining the least (11 percent to 13 percent).
Among those who will increase spending, Baby Boomers show the most significant increase, with 31 percent reporting increased spending in 2022, compared to 17 percent in 2020. Gen X and Gen Z, who said they would increase spending, rose slightly, while Millennials, who said they would increase spending, fell from 49% in 2020 to 43% in 2022.
Overall, for the first time, pet ownership rates are split between younger and older generations, which could signal that Millennial and Gen Z pet owners will begin to have a greater impact on the direction of the industry in the coming years.
Channels of exposure to the pet supply consumer
In terms of channels for learning about new pet supply products, the report notes that the most common channels include visiting stores (52%), followed by the Internet (45%). Social media (38%), friends and family (38%) and TV commercials (35%) were the main channels used to open awareness of new products.
Of those who learned about new products through digital channels, 50% did so primarily through the brand’s website, an increase from 45% last year.
They are followed by YouTube (45%) as well as retailer websites (43%), Facebook (42%), product review sites (33%), Instagram (32%), TikTok (25%) and Twitter (18%).
In terms of purchase channels, 38% of pet owners typically buy pet products in person at a brick-and-mortar store, compared to 34% who buy online. in 2022, 50% of pet owners purchase online with the same frequency, but 42% have increased their frequency and 8% have decreased it.
In 2023, 31% of pet owners say they plan to make more use of online shopping and home delivery, while 19% say they plan to order online and pick up in-store more frequently and 16% plan to use curbside pickup more frequently.
Overall, brick-and-mortar stores remain an important channel for reaching pet supply consumers, but the rise of e-commerce, social media and AI-related technologies will have a greater impact on how pet brands market themselves.