Top Dog: Yan Lei of the Lee Pet
PetSmart, America’s largest retailer of pet products, is known on this side of the globe as Lee Pet. Offering imported products, grooming, photography and kennel services and boasting premium foreign brands such as Eukanaba, Science Diet and Cesar, China’s first pet empire claims the title of Beijing’s biggest pet store for its Chaowai Soho branch. Agenda picked up our pooches and headed down for a chat with Yan Lei, the top dog of the Lee Pet pack.
What did you do before Lee Pet?
I went to Canada at 18 and attended high school and university there. I worked part-time at PetSmart while I was a student in need of extra cash, and after graduation I worked as a manager at an electronics company for half a year. I had a dog growing up in China, and have always loved animals. I even went so far as to buy a golden retriever puppy while overseas, to help me with my homesickness. After working in both a pet store and in management, I became interested in the idea of running a pet shop, so that I could combine my passion for animals and my managerial skills. I did some research and found that Lee Pet was the strongest player in the Chinese market, so I applied, joined the managerial team, and that is where it all began!
How did you get interested in animals?
My family has always had pets, and we had a dog when I was growing up. In China, dogs often become a part of the household because they are a form of security, but of course they also become a part of the family. There’s no real story behind it, I’m just an animal lover.
When did you decide to make them your career focus?
When I first got involved I was a student in need of cash, so I got a job at PetSmart to pay for my beer. There, I fell in love with the industry, and saw that it was a business with a lot of potential – lots of people have pets, but there aren’t many specialty stores for pet supplies and vets in China, and some of the ones there are aren’t always professional. We’ve already doubled our investment in two years.
What’s your favorite animal and why?
Dogs. They’re loyal, man’s best friend, very intelligent, and every breed has its own individual set of characteristics, due to each of them originally having their own use. I’m definitely not a cat man! Dogs can communicate with you, cats just want you to feed them and then they go away!
If you could be any animal, what would you choose to be and why?
It would have to be a dog, because they get lots of love from their families. I think they have a better life than people – no need to work, no stress, no money problems. And they get to sleep as much as they want!
What’s your dream pet?
There are too many choices! I’m going to have to stay sensible – I think horses are my second favorite animal after dogs. They are similar in terms of loyalty and intelligence.
What was the local market like for pets when Lee Pet was established?
When we started, there weren’t really any professional services available for pets. It is a big market, and because the competition was and remains quite weak, it was a great time to get involved. Our success is due to a combination of great professionals, good capital, and luck! Pets are becoming more and more popular, and people will always spend money on them – they’re like children! An average pet-owning household will spend approximately USD 3,000 every year on their pets.
Was Lee Pet initially hard to set up?
As said, we were very fortunate. Now we are facing the difficulty of maintaining our high standards as we ex pand to different cities around China. Shopping behaviors are different in every city – China is such a big place that the hardest challenge we face is tailoring the services we provide to meet the needs of each city.
Would you say your business is more focused on customers who shop online or in stores?
In-store retail covers around 75-80% of our business. Other important areas for us are website advertising and membership programs. We call chinapet.com our “air force” and China Kennel Club our “navy” because it goes around China hosting dogshows and generating further advertising. Our stores are “the army” the fighting forces on the ground.
What are Lee Pet’s future plans and goals?
We hope to have 15 stores in Beijing and 20 in other cities by the end of 2010, including franchises. The next big step following that is going public around 2013. We have predicted that sales in that year should be around RMB 300 million.
What’s your best tip for pet owners in Beijing?
When you walk your dog, put them on a leash and always pick up your dog’s mess! There is nothing worse than poo on the pavement! We’re currently working with the police department to discuss what rules should be put in place for dog owners in Beijing. Also, you should always make sure to go to professional stores and vets. You want the best quality care possible for your pet.
What are your favorite places to go in Beijing?
To eat, Jasmine in Gongti. The Asian-American fusion food there is so good that I go there three or four times a week. I go to a lot of different places to drink. I like Pavillion, and Vics is probably my favorite club.
What is the most obscure question you’ve ever been asked about animals/pets?
People ask me if I’ve eaten dog meat quite a lot. I’ve never really fielded any strange questions, though I frequently get asked daft, irritating things. Sometimes I feel like I’m teaching people when they ask me dumb questions and I have to spend 20 minutes explaining why you should feed your puppy dog food rather than what you’d cook for the rest your family. It is really frustrating!
Lee Pet Mon-Fri 10am-9pm, Sat-Sun 10am-9.30pm. Rm 3097, Bldg A, Chaowai Soho, 6 Chaoyangmenwai Dajie, Chaoyang District. (5900 5499; hotline 4006-LEEPET, English 138 1029 5757; 2) Daily 24 hours. 5-6, 1/F, Courtyard 9, Lincui Lu, Chaoyang District. (5821 3503); 3) Daily 9.30am-9.30pm. Rm 04, Bldg 4, Shiyun Haoting (behind the Shuangjing Carrefour and Landgent Chateau), 33 Guangqu Lu, Chaoyang District. (8776 9602); 4) Mon-Thu 10am-9pm, Fri-Sun 10am-10pm. 4119, 4/F, Golden Re-sources Shopping Mall, 1 Yuanda Lu, Haidian District. (8887 0706) www.leepet.com 乐宠, 1)朝阳区朝阳门外大街6号朝外Soho A座3层3097; 2)朝阳区林萃路9号院5-6底商 ; 3)朝阳区广渠路33号石韵浩庭04号楼04; 4)海淀区远大路1号金源燕莎购物中心4层西侧4119
Jasmine Daily 11am-2pm, 6-10.30pm. Gongti Donglu (opposite Gate 9 of Workers’ Stadium), Chaoyang District (6553 8608) www.beijingjasmine.com 茉莉，朝阳区工人体育场东门9号看台对面
Pavillion Daily 10am-2am. Gongti Xilu (opposite west gate of Workers’ Stadium), Chaoyang District. (6507 2617) www.pavillionbeijing.com 万龙腾飞,朝阳区工体西路（工人体育场西门对面）
Vics Daily 8.30pm-late. Inside the north gate of the Workers’ Stadium, Chaoyang District. (5293 0333) 威克斯，朝阳区工体北门内
