Are you looking to break into the pet product market? If so, you’re coming into a popular industry niche at a good time. According to the American Pet Products Association (APPA), spending on pets or pet-related products in the United States reached more than $123 billion in 2021, and continuing growth is forecast through the end of the decade.
Moreover, based on a 2021-2022 survey also conducted by the APPA, nearly two-thirds of American households own at least one pet. Increasing pet ownership means people spend more on their pets than they have in the past. As a result, there is plentiful opportunity for innovation, growth, and profitability in the pet product industry. However, getting started and driving towards success requires more than just a unique idea or a great design concept for new pet products.
With growth comes additional competition, and the pet industry is no different. Your business will need to invest time into sourcing support from a quality manufacturer that can help you achieve a consistent, reliable output of products. Since so many pet products are made from plastic — including chew toys, bowls, collars, balls, tools for pet training, and more — you will likely be looking for injection molding manufacturers.
How can you break into this space and succeed?
Getting Into the Pet Product Industry
It’s hard to underrate the value of experience, and a partner with a good reputation for delivering superb and consistent product quality is an invaluable asset. As you prepare to enter this space, you will need to consider many details along the way. These include:
- What type of plastic pet products do you want to produce, and for what types of pets?
- Which plastic materials will yield the right physical characteristics and qualities?
- How will you handle everything from assembling and kitting to inspection and, ultimately, distribution?
Forging early partnerships with companies that are experienced in all aspects of this industry, like Reliant Worldwide Plastics, can pave the way to successful manufacturing runs and encouraging product launches. As you dip your toes into this sector, one thing quickly becomes clear: top-notch design is a must-have to stand out to consumers.
Achieving Excellence in Design
Whether you’re thinking about a squeaky toy meant for dogs to enjoy or you want to produce a new line of plastic water dishes suitable for many animals, everything starts with good design.
Design means more than just the physical appearance of your product. There are other key elements to producing successful plastic products. What are they?
- Durability. Is the design sturdy enough to stand up to the real-world stresses of use by pets? Have you chosen the right pet product materials to ensure that the plastic is safe for pets and strong enough to make customers feel they’ve received a good value?
- Repeatability. Is the design of your part or parts easy to replicate in a molding environment? Will you run into problems from batch to batch, or will you be able to meet your expectations regularly? Assessing mold quality and reliability is possible with both manufacturer expertise and advanced technology, such as mold flow analysis.
- The correct chemical or physical qualities to meet any regulatory requirements and satisfy pet owners. For example, some buyers look specifically for products that incorporate more recycled materials than others.
The right partner makes ticking these boxes an easy process.
Choosing the Right Plastics Manufacturer
There are two significant reasons for investing time into carefully selecting a manufacturing partner.
First, safety is incredibly important. People care deeply about their pets and want to ensure they buy items that won’t compromise the safety of their animals. Cutting corners in manufacturing or choosing a manufacturer that doesn’t have a strong track record for quality control could mean putting out an unsafe product.
Second, function and product quality matter, even beyond simple safety matters. These days, consumer satisfaction matters more than ever before. Between online reviews, social media, discussion boards, and other online channels for word of mouth, there are plenty of ways consumers can communicate about your products. Negative buzz can be challenging, but positive word of mouth can snowball into new popularity.
Doing your homework on injection molding manufacturers and teaming up with the right company can pave the way toward more durable products that serve their intended function, unlike pet products that break easily or just don’t work very well.
Steps for Choosing Injection Molding Manufacturers
So how can you choose an injection molding company to be your pet product manufacturing channel? The good news is that the steps for finding the ideal manufacturers for plastic pet products are generally the same ones you would take for any kind of injection molding due diligence. These steps include:
1. Research. Explore different injection molding companies, learn about their operations and the services they provide, explore the industries they work with, and investigate their quality control standards. Learn about their supply chain and turnaround times, too.
2. Prototyping. You may already have a prototype you want to replicate, or you might just have a design concept you need help taking to the finish line. Any reputable plastic manufacturing entity will not only work with you to build products to order, but will also provide prototypes for you to view, test, and approve before you commit to a full manufacturing run. Look for a team ready to discuss this stage up front.
3. Consulting on pricing. Before you roll forward with your project, your manufacturer should also be willing to provide a price quote for your order. Honesty and transparency should be must-haves.
When you’re satisfied that you’ve found a partner that understands the pet industry, you can take the next steps.
Coordinate With Your Plastics Manufacturer Today
The biggest advantage of plastic injection molding is that it allows a simplified approach to bulk manufacturing. Once you have a manufacturer in place that you trust, it’s also easy to re-order products when you start running low on inventory. Take care with forecasting product demand and coordinate with your manufacturer to place an order that allows for inventory sufficient to meet demand.
At Reliant Worldwide Plastics, we have a strong reputation for our plastic manufacturing work across various industries, from aerospace to sports and recreation. We are proud to offer our services as a pet product manufacturing partner and would be honored to work alongside your business in creating a stellar product. Contact Reliant Plastics today to get started.
