Dive Brief:

• To address various pet owners' needs, and build on the growth it experienced this past year, Petco on Wednesday expanded its PupBox subscription offerings. 
• The retailer announced it will add personalized options to cater to four stages of a dog's life: puppy, young pup, grown pup and senior pup, according to a company press release.
• The expanded offering, which will begin shipping to customers on Sept. 15, will be tailored to pets' age, gender, size, allergies and other preferences. Each box includes five to seven items and ranges in price from $29 to $39.

Dive Insight:

As the pandemic left many consumers isolated from the outside world, some turned to pets as a source of comfort. The number of U.S. households owning a pet was projected to grow 4% in 2020, according to research from Packaged Facts.

In an attempt to win over the "millions of incremental new pets in homes since 2020" — and more importantly, their owners — Petco expanded upon its subscription service, further solidifying its position as a recurring revenue stream.

Petco in 2017 acquired PupBox after the subscription service appeared on "Shark Tank," and has continued to grow the business.

"Over the last two years, PupBox has tripled in size, and today we are excited to boost that momentum by announcing a broadening of our PupBox assortment to all ages of dogs," Petco CEO Ron Coughlin said in a statement. "This will provide pet parents with curated toys, treats without artificial ingredients and great training, grooming and veterinary offers, all while further strengthening our recurring revenue model – good for pets and good for Petco."

The heightened demand in the pet category this past year has helped boost the retailer's financial results and customer base. Petco, which went public again in January, reported revenue grew 19% in its most recent quarter, driven by a 20% increase in comparable sales — the 11th consecutive quarter of growth in that measure — while its net income widened to $75 million. The retailer also added 1 million customers in the second quarter.

But the pet subscription service space more specifically has been on the rise as well. Bark, the parent company to subscription services BarkBox and Super Chewer, late last year entered into an agreement to be acquired by Northern Star Acquisition Corp., a publicly-traded special purpose acquisition company, or SPAC. The company in June made its public debut on the New York Stock Exchange.