These 5 Pet Products Sell Best At The Checkout Counter

In her May-Jun PETS+ column, Georganne Bender offered advice on how to make your checkout counter work harder and earn more. Among her many helpful tips, she recommended displaying there the high-margin products that pet parents will likely purchase on impulse or have forgotten to pick up. With that advice in mind, we asked the PETS+ Brain Squad which products sell well at their check-out counter. Here are the top five answers, plus a few noteworthy others.

1. Chews

Retailers said body parts such as duck feet and rabbit ears catch customer attention and lead to add-ons, and the top chew brand mentioned by name was Etta Says. Jennifer Flanagan of Pacific NW Pets in Sherwood, OR, shared, “Etta Says is always on our counter. We keep rabbit, deer and beef chews in stock as well as their Cookie Cruncher treats.” Wag & Bright Mighty Marrows also got several shoutouts. Samantha Youngblood of Youngblood’s Natural Animal Care Center and Massage in Wilkinson, IN, said, “Wag & Bright is a higher-end chew we stock, and it has a counter display.”

2. Decorated Cookies

These “sweet” treats came in second, with the ability to regularly offer new designs a draw for retailers. Shell Tomjack of The sPaw in Rapid City, SD, shared, “We always have individually decorated cookies at the counter. We order seasonal ones every month, and they are always a popular pickup for our customers.” Several retailers praised Preppy Puppy Bakery as a vendor of decorated cookies. “Especially so far this summer, as they have come out with some really cute new designs,” Amber Hudson of The Aquarium Pet Store in Weatherford, OK, said. Shelly Nicastro of Essex Bird & Pet Supply in Essex, MA, shared that she maintains a 42% margin on these cookies.

3. Poop Bags

Moving on to items pet parents often forget they need until checkout, retailers pointed out that they keep the single rolls within reach for quick-and-easy buys. Earth Rated and Metro Paws were top brands mentioned.

4. Flea and Tick Products

Many retailers said they dedicate checkout space to seasonal items, and right now that means flea and tick preventatives and tools. “Currently, Wondercide, Soundshield and Seresto displays are on the counter. Wondercide is the best margin,” Diane Mullen of Winni Paw Station in Wolfeboro, NH, said. Amy and Pat Schiek of Lucky Dogs in Skaneateles, NY, carry these products for people as well as pets. They pointed to “Tickless ultrasonic tick and flea repeller for cats and dogs, and the human version also. We sell a lot!” And Tomjack appreciates the profitability of Tick Twisters. “They are great impulse buys and great markup.”

5. Supplements and Wellness Products

Products that require education also get space at checkout counters. When a customer being rung up picks up a product such as a CBD tincture, it allows the retailer to turn a teaching moment into a sale. They also appreciate being able to keep an eye on these higher-priced items. “Most of our CBDs are at the register,” Ruth Sturgis of Dog Daze in North Syracuse, NY, said, adding that Rooted Owl supplements are there as well. “They might not be the most expensive, but we want to tell people about them.”

Other Indie Faves

The PETS+ Brain Squad provided even more insight into what sells well at the checkout counter.

Pet House, the mini candles in particular, got several mentions, as did stickers. “Vinyl stickers! We sell a lot of different brands from Faire at $4 each, and we sell at least $10k in stickers a year,” Shane Somerville of Paddywack in Mill Creek, WA.

Victoria Park of Park Pet Supply in Atlanta, GA, pointed out that she keeps there “Open Farm 33.8-ounce bone broth containers. It starts the conversation, and we sell a lot more of it by the register.”

Trial sizes can be found at the checkout in Loyl’s Natural Pet in Houston, TX. Cynthia McKinney said, “Our counter has Primal dehydrated goat milk trials and SuperSnout trials.”

“We sell the Yeowww Catnip cigars out of the nice cigar box display and lots of individual servings of the Bonito House Soda Bonito flakes,” said Angela Velasquez of The Kitty Bodega in Houston, TX.

Robert L. Critselous of Drooly’s Dog Bakery in Bentonville, AR, has a nickname for his top sellers at the checkout counter: “The W Winners we call them. Wunderballs and Whimzees.”

And Danyle Morse of Claremont Pet & Aquarium Center in Claremont, NH, appeals to the human children who come into her store with shopping pet parents. “We have the front of our checkout counter covered in kid’s toys. They are ordered on Faire, and we get much more than standard mark up on them. They are all at kid level, and they sell so fast. All small things like slime, squish balls, plastic animals.”