PetSmart® Launches its First-Ever Back-to-School Pet Collection

Retailer Celebrates Big with School-Themed Pet Gear, the Return of the Pets in the Classroom Program and In-Store Events for the Whole Family

Firm believers in celebrating all life’s moments with pets, PetSmart, the leading pet specialty retailer in North America, aims to ensure pets enjoy the excitement of the back-to-school season with its first-ever Back-to-School Collection. Pups will now be classroom-ready with items like the School Bus Cuddler Bed, Smart Owl Corduroy Toy and stylish Ruffle Denim Dog Dress pictured here. This collection is now available in all 1,500-plus PetSmart stores across the U.S. and Canada and online at petsmart.com and petsmart.ca. (Photo: Business Wire)

PHOENIX--()--In many parts of the country, this month marks the start of school, which has families shopping for essentials like rulers, pencils, school shoes, clothes and more. Firm believers in celebrating life’s moments with pets, PetSmart, the leading pet specialty retailer in North America, aims to ensure pets enjoy the excitement of the season too with its very first Back-to-School Collection, available in all 1,500-plus PetSmart stores across the U.S. and Canada and online at petsmart.com and petsmart.ca.

“We know families enjoy including their pets in holidays, birthdays and celebrations and the excitement of the back-to-school season is no exception,” said Eran Cohen, chief customer experience officer, PetSmart. “We’ve seen great success with festive seasonal product collections and feel strongly pet parents will enjoy including their pets in the thrill of the first day of school, too. I mean, what pup wouldn’t enjoy a bright yellow school bus bed, big plush calculator or a squeaky carton of milk toy?”

Smart Toys – Just as children’s backpacks are stuffed with sharp new pencils, composition books and calculators, dogs’ toy bins can be filled with dog-friendly versions of these classic back-to-school supplies. Nothing says back to school more than a bespectacled worm flattie donning a graduation cap, while cute toys shaped like pencils and nerdy-face apples with crinkle fill provide hours of fun for pups. Iconic school essentials like vinyl cartons of milk and plush calculator complete with squeakers are sure to provide photo ops worthy of social media sharing.

Stylish Apparel – Ever consider including your dogs in the classic event -- school picture day? This PetSmart collection has the goods to get pups photo-ready. The Top Paw® Denim Heart Dog Tee mirrors what can be found on the racks of children’s clothing stores. With its pink and white stripes and mock-stitching, it’s cute enough to challenge the kids in a “who wore it best” contest. Dapper dogs are sure to turn heads with the Denim and Plaid Tie Combo tee. Made of lightweight, breathable fabric, the tee easily slips on and off making it as comfortable as it is cute. Finally, the Ruffle Denim Dog Dress, complete with plaid pockets and subtle gray stripes is ideal for the preppy pup on the prowl.

Back-to-School Bedding – The start of the school year means early mornings with children boarding busses bound for school. At-home pups can wait for their human family members to arrive home in their very own School Bus Cuddler Bed. This bed features an easy step-in design, soft walls and dark grey chambray-like lining. Toss in an adorable rainbow pet pillow to create a playful, cozy space for pets.

Classroom Pets + Learning = Big Fun
PetSmart is proud to be a returning sponsor of the Pets in the Classroom Grant Program, which provides grants to pre-kindergarten through 9th grade teachers in both private and public schools to purchase and maintain small animals in the classroom. Having pets in the classroom not only provides excitement, they help teach students responsible, long-term pet care at an early age. Grants are now being accepted for the 2017-2018 school year. For more information on the Pets in the Classroom grant program, visit www.PetsintheClassroom.org.

Education & Entertainment: Upcoming In-Store Family Events
Small Pets Show & Tell Event
Aug. 12
12 - 3 p.m. – local time
Bring the kids to meet the specialty pets of PetSmart! Kids can visit any participating PetSmart store to take part in hands-on experience with the specialty pets of the store including fish, hamsters and reptiles. Kids can also make their own tank with aquarium sticker sheets, while learning about the basics of fish care.

Tailgating Event
Sept. 23
12 – 2 p.m. – local time
Bring pups and your team spirit to one of our hottest in-store events of the season. Your pup can enjoy free treat samples and free chalking of favorite collegiate and professional team’s colors or a football Pet Expressions* stencil application. Pets who come dressed in their team’s favorite colors can also receive a $5 off coupon for their next pet sports apparel purchase.

About PetSmart®
PetSmart, Inc. is the largest specialty pet retailer of services and solutions for the lifetime needs of pets. At PetSmart, we love pets, and we believe pets make us better people. Every day with every connection, PetSmart’s passionate associates help bring pet parents closer to their pets so they, together, can live more fulfilled lives. This vision impacts everything we do for our customers, the way we support our associates and how we give back to our communities. We employ approximately 55,000 associates, operate more than 1,500 pet stores in the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico, as well as more than 200 in-store PetSmart® PetsHotel® dog and cat boarding facilities. PetSmart provides a broad range of competitively priced pet food and products, as well as pet-focused services such as dog training, pet grooming, pet boarding, PetSmart® Doggie Day Camp® and pet adoption. PetSmart, together with non-profits PetSmart Charities® and PetSmart Charities™ of Canada, invite more than 3,000 animal welfare organizations to bring adoptable pets into stores so they have the best chance possible of finding a forever home. Through this in-store adoption program and other signature events, PetSmart has facilitated more than 7.4 million adoptions – more than any other brick-and-mortar organization. The company’s portfolio of digital resources for pet parents includes PetSmart.com, OnlyNaturalPet.com, petMD.com, Pawculture.com, AllPaws, an online pet adoption platform that helps potential pet parents find the perfect pet to adopt based on their home, family and lifestyle, as well as BlogPaws, the world’s first pet blogger and influencer network. Through these digital platforms, PetSmart offers the most comprehensive online pet supplies and pet care information in the U.S. In celebration of its 30th anniversary, PetSmart launched its Buy a Bag, Give a Meal™ program in March 2017. For every bag of cat or dog food purchased March 1 – Dec. 31, 2017, PetSmart will donate a meal to pets in need and expects to donate more than 60 million meals in 2017**. In May 2017, PetSmart acquired Chewy.com, a leading online retailer of pet food and products in the U.S., which operates as an independent subsidiary.

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* Excludes NFL, NCAA & MLB licensed Pet Expressions. Chalking and stenciling not available in SC, Boulder, CO & select cities in CA.

**Ends 12/31/17. 5 oz. dog food, 1.5 oz. cat food donated to PetSmart Charities to feed dogs and cats in need. See details at petsmart.com/giveameal. The actual number of meals donated is based on dog and cat food bags sold. The meal donation estimate is based on historic sales for similar time periods. No guaranteed amount. Rescue Bank and Feeding America will help distribute a large portion of the pet food donation in the U.S.

Contacts

Golin for PetSmart
Danielle Bickelmann, 469-680-2503
dbickelmann@golin.com
or
PetSmart Media Line:
623-587-2177

Contacts

Golin for PetSmart
Danielle Bickelmann, 469-680-2503
dbickelmann@golin.com
or
PetSmart Media Line:
623-587-2177