Sit. Eat. Chaise.

Corey Drew started designing pet furniture after he couldn’t find appealing furniture for his own dog. [Photo: Scott Wiseman]

Shortly after graduating from the Savannah College of Art & Design in 2005, Corey Drew landed his dream job designing furniture for a high-end hospitality furniture manufacturer in Miami. But after a year of frequent traveling to China and the Philippines, Drew grew tired of living out of a suitcase and longed to spend more time with his dog.

“So I came back, and I started to design pet furniture because I was looking for some for my dog and couldn’t find any,” says Drew. He also took a day job working for one the largest bamboo kitchenware manufacturers in Florida and ended up making contacts in China who later provided a production pipeline for his patented designs.

In 2008, as the recession hit, Drew received his first shipments of his products: A Bambu Lounger, a pet bed made of bamboo, and a pet feeder he calls the Bambu Diner.

While it took awhile to sell those first shipments, Drew says business took off in 2010, when his high-end pet furniture caught the attention of Costco wholesalers. After the warehouse club made several orders, Drew was able to hire employees to help him ramp up the operations of Pet Lounge Studios, which is now receiving orders from PetSmart, Frontgate, In the Company of Dogs and other retailers.

Drew posted $750,000 in sales over the past 16 months.

---

The Pet Market

• $17 billion — spending in the U.S. on pets in 1994
  
• $51 billion — spending on pets in 2011
  
• $67.7 billion — projected spending in 2016
  
• 62% — percentage of U.S. households that own a pet (72.9 million homes), according to a 2011-12 American Pet Products Association survey
  
• 39% — percentage of households that own at least one cat
  
• 43% — percentage of households that own at least one dog
  
• $52.87 billion — projected amount Americans will spend this year on their pets:
  
• $20.46 billion — amount spent on pet food
  
• $13.59 billion — amount spent on vet care
  
• $12.56 billion — amount spent on supplies and over-the-counter medicine
• $4.11 billion — amount spent on
  grooming and boarding
• $2.15 billion — live animal purchases
  Source: American Pet Products Association

Annual Expenses of a Pet Owner
?	Dogs	Cats
Surgical vet visits	$407	$425
Kennel boarding	274	166
Food	254	220
Routine vet	248	219
Vitamins	95	43
Travel expenses	78	48
Groomer/grooming aids	73	34
Food treats	70	41
Toys	43	21
Total	$1,542	$1,217
Source: American Pet Products Association

Pet Supermarket

Founded in 1973 by Chuck West as Pet Circus, the family-owned company grew to a chain of nine stores by 1984. Impressed by the success of Home Depot and Office Depot, West decided in 1986 to reposition his business after the large supply store chains and rebranded the Sunrise-based chain as Pet Supermarket. Today, Pet Supermarket operates 127 stores in Florida, Alabama, California, Georgia, Kentucky, Nevada and North Carolina and is the seventh-largest pet specialty chain in the nation, according to Pet Business magazine. Sales grew from $184 million in 2010 to $213 million in 2011 and the company hired 180 workers last year.

Bayside Pet Resort and Spa

Robert Huff, 65, transformed the former Rip Van Winkle bowling alley in Sarasota into a pet resort and spa, which was scheduled to open last month. The business offers boarding, day care and grooming services. The 22,000-sq.-ft. facility features one and two-bedroom suites, some with plasma TV screens and web cams for owners to keep an eye on their pets remotely.
Meanwhile, doggie day care and boarding businesses are one of the fastest-growing segments of the pet service industry. Florida businesses include homegrown day care chains like Pet Paradise and Camp Canine as well as franchises of national chains like Camp Bow Wow and Central Bark.

Ark Naturals

Susan and Jay Weiss launched their natural pet products company in 1996 in Naples and are now posting several millions of dollars in sales annually. The company’s best-selling products, Susan Weiss says, are its dental products, which include Breath-Less, a chewable brushless toothpaste, and the Breath-Less Plaque Zapper, which is added to a pet’s water and helps prevent dental decay, plaque, tartar and bad breath. Ark also offers natural flea and tick control products, joint supplements, probiotics and an all-natural herbal calming formula.

Southwest Florida Veterinary Specialists & 24-Hour Emergency Hospital

The Bonita Springs business has an ambulance equipped with an oxygen system, blood pressure and heart monitoring equipment, a defibrillator and other devices. Veterinarian Wendy Arsenault, who owns the business, specializes in cardiology.

Stemlogic

Jason Griffeth, co-founder and COO, says his Weston company’s animal stem cell therapy kits, launched in 2010, can shave time and cost off stem cell therapy treatment, making it better for veterinarians and their patients.

Rocky’s Retreat Canine Health & Fitness Center

Dogs can go for a swim, get a $60 massage or experience an $85 aromatherapy session. Sherri Cappabianca and Toby Gass opened the Orlando business last year after Cappabianca was laid off from her job as a software engineer.

Rick’s Dog Deli

Charlie Guns’ Orlando store sells custom, breed-specific meals for dogs. The former equities trader says revenue has tripled from the fourth quarter of 2011 to the first quarter of 2012.

Woof Gang Bakery

Paul Allen and his wife, Cara, launched a chain of pet food stores 4½ years ago. The Orlando-based company carries an array of products, from pet foods, treats and supplements to toys, fashion accessories and grooming services.