Pet Medications: Ecommerce Accounts for 12% of U.S. Market Sales, reports Packaged Facts

ROCKVILLE, Md., Feb. 26, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- A recent trend in the U.S. pet medications market has seen veterinarians trying to counter the loss of their pharmaceutical sales by moving onto their competitors' turf. Veterinarians now increasingly sell their pharmaceuticals online. As a result e-commerce operations are a steadily growing channel for pet medications, representing about 12% of the $9 billion American pet medications industry, according to market research firm Packaged Facts in the report Pet Medications in the U.S., 5th Edition.

"There no doubt about it, sales in the digital realm continue to grow at a rapid pace and will become an increasingly important segment for both veterinarians and pet parents alike," says David Sprinkle, research director for Packaged Facts.

Packaged Facts' National Pet Owner Survey revealed that 40% of pet owners buy pet products online. And among those purchasing pet products online, the percentage who have made a purchase in the last seven days has increased annually, with 35% in 2017 compared to just 14% in 2013.

While pet owners have no need to make weekly pet medication purchases, the opportunity to sell them pet medications online is clearly a big one. Because of their small size and low shipping costs, pet medications are particularly well suited for sale via the Internet, which is an excellent medium for delivering the kind of information consumers need to make informed choices.

As a result, investment firms have recognized this opportunity. Last year, Vets First Choice, which fulfills prescriptions for home delivery and creates online stores for veterinarians, announced that it had raised $223 million from an investment group led by investment firms Clayton, Dubilier & Rice (CD&R) and Hillhouse Capital Group. And competitor VetSource counts VCA as a major investor and client, and also fulfills home-delivered prescriptions for the likes of distributors Henry Schein, Patterson, MWI and Merritt Veterinary Supplies. Meanwhile, e-commerce players Amazon, Chewy.com, 1-800-PetMeds and others are all active purveyors of pet medications online.

Beyond just online retailing of pet medications, Packaged Facts forecasts that pet medications will be one of the highest growth areas of the petcare industry during the next decade, as animal health companies develop new blockbusters that are still on patent?and thus somewhat resistant to price competition. With new products, the veterinary channel will continue to be critical to the industry, as animal health companies understand that the veterinarian will continue to hold considerable sway over pet owner decisions, especially for products that require a prescription. At the same time, as more ethical and prescription products migrate to OTC, there's no denying that e-commerce and brick-and-mortar stores alike will make pet medications a dynamic market in which to do business.

About the Report

Pet Medications in the U.S., 5th Edition analyzes the market for prescription and over-the-counter medications for dogs and cats, with a particular focus on brand-name products used by consumers. These include prescription, over-the-counter (OTC or "retail"), and ethical products (nonprescription medications whose distribution is restricted by the manufacturer to veterinarians). The primary focus of this report is on antiparasitics (flea, tick, heartworm, etc.), but it also covers market-shaping developments in other areas including cancer, cognitive dysfunction, mood disorder, pain management, and obesity/diabetes.

View additional information about Pet Medications in the U.S., 5th Edition, including purchase options, the abstract, table of contents, and related reports at Packaged Facts' website: https://www.packagedfacts.com/pet-products-services-c124/.

About Packaged Facts 

Packaged Facts, a division of MarketResearch.com, publishes market intelligence on a wide range of consumer market topics, including consumer demographics and shopper insights, consumer financial products and services, consumer goods and retailing, consumer packaged goods, and pet products and services.  Packaged Facts also offers a full range of custom research services.

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SOURCE Packaged Facts