Petsmart, America’s largest pet retailer, has announced that it is buying its smaller rival, Petco, in an all-cash deal worth $8.7 billion.
This is a huge consolidation in the pet industry and will create a company with over $29 billion in sales and more than 3,500 stores across the US and Canada.
The deal is expected to close in the second half of next year and Petsmart says it plans to keep both brands running as separate businesses.
It’s a big move for Petsmart, which has been facing increasing competition from online retailers such as Amazon.
The acquisition of Petco will help Petsmart to better compete against Amazon and other online retailers who have been eating into its market share.
Petsmart says the deal will also allow it to offer a wider range of products and services to its customers.
So what does this mean for the pet industry?
Well, it’s still early days but this could be the start of a consolidation wave as companies look to bulk up to better compete against the likes of Amazon.