WITH its thrust to become more of a customer hub, True Pet Food opened its first store inside MegaMart, Waterloo Road on November 17.

The new store will cater to a wide range of pet owners, offering products for dogs, cats, rabbits, and small animals.

Tina Hamilton, senior manager for True Pet Food, told the Jamaica Observer on Tuesday that the store has been in the making since 2020.

“True Pet Food went into commercial retail stores in January 2020. The idea for the branded store was from that time, but because of COVID-19, we couldn’t execute, so it was delayed. The reason why we finally were able to open this year was twofold: The opportunity to partner with MegaMart and just how much the brand has grown and how much people were asking for a store like this. So, customers themselves were asking for more. They wanted more engagement from the brand, and this was the best way we thought to do it,” said Hamilton.

Hamilton explained the motivation for starting the company.

“The True Pet Food brand was started because there was a serious lack of brands for pets, pet care and pet food in Jamaica that were focused on the needs of Caribbean pets. It was really just food that was manufactured elsewhere, imported into the country and resold. There was no real focus on the needs of Caribbean pets. And that’s how True started. We started with doing dog food and we’ve now expanded into other areas, including grooming, pet care, and we’re going into other pet foods like bird, rabbit and cat food.”

Funding to get the store going was provided by True’s parent company the CB Group.

“True Pet is a part of the Newport Mills family, which is a part of the larger company CB Group; even though it’s a smaller division, its funding came from the larger parent company,” Hamilton disclosed.

Hamilton also revealed that more locations are on the horizon.

“As far as the store goes, we only have the one location in Kingston, but the western side has been requesting us for quite some time. So, the hope is to expand into new locations in the upcoming year. As long as this one goes well, it should be an easy sell to get into other locations,” she said.

She continued, “It’s a pet food branded store and more of a customer hub. So even though we have products there from True and we have certain things for your pets, its not really about being a pet store, it’s about the customers being able to have direct access to us, where they can tell us exactly what they want in new products, they can test new products coming out. We also have different memberships available, and we have services like our True Concierge where we can remember to do things for your pets: pet appointments, grooming appointments. It’s a really innovative way of looking at how we engage with people who use our brand and since we are the only Jamaican-born brand of pet food in the island, it’s very important that we have that touch point. So this is the first one in Kingston; we’re going to spread out across the island and the hope is to spread out across the Caribbean very, very soon.”

The store will be open Wednesday to Sunday, from 9:00 am to 9:00, and will be staffed by a dedicated team of two.

Customers who sign up for the True Membership programme will enjoy personalised services for their pets.

“We offer our True Membership, a subscription plan that allows customers to have dog food delivered directly to their homes for as low as $10,000 per month. We’ll also be launching our flea and tick solution, as well as animal bedding. Additionally, our concierge service will take the hassle out of pet care — whether it’s scheduling vet or grooming appointments. We can even pick up and drop off your pet, so you don’t have to worry. It’s more than just nutrition; it’s a full pet lifestyle,” said Shevoneese McFarlane, digital sales and marketing coordinator at True Pet Food.

The True Rewards programme, meanwhile, will provide pet owners with access to a network of certified veterinarians, breeders, trainers, and groomers for expert consultations.