MARATHON — There’s about to be a new one-stop shop for all of your pet needs in town.
The Superior North Pet Centre is getting ready to open its doors to the town of Marathon, aiming for a grand opening near the beginning of August.
Sunny Jordan, owner of the Superior North Pet Centre, spoke to Dougall Media and explained why she decided it was time to open a pet supply store in Marathon.
“There’s honestly a mix of the frustration of not being able to get any pet supplies here without having to drive quite a distance and, even then, you may or may not get it.
“Also, the difficulty of discussions where everyone seems to have a different expectation of what would be good for their pet,” Jordan said.
“It’s been a very eye-opening experience.”
Jordan also has a background in animal biology and has previously worked in the animal/veterinary field for nearly six years.
“It’s been a bit of a passion. You can’t really get me to shut up when you talk about animals and their food, nutrition, what would be good for them and the enrichment that they need,” she said.
Jordan recently made a post on Facebook asking residents to provide input and to comment indicating what brands of food or items they’d like to see stocked at the centre.
Her post received 170 likes and 165 comments.
She said the response to her announcement of the store’s opening has been overwhelmingly positive.
“I didn’t expect such positive feedback from the people around town and even our surrounding areas. Everyone seems quite excited,” she said.
Jordan described the comments she has received as ranging from requests for very specific items to much broader ideas about what the store should carry.
She stressed that an increased variety of products — specifically Canadian-made products, for the most part – and a greater focus on the consumer will help set the Superior North Pet Centre apart from traditional stores.
“Any kind of quality pet product has been extremely difficult to come across here. I mean, you kind of get the basic grocery store brands and a lot of them don’t tend to really meet the needs of, say, dogs with sensitive stomachs, cats that have weight problems or cats with urinary issues.
“Whereas having a pet store like us where we can specially order food – even if we don’t stock it on the shelf – for people who require specialty diets for their pets and know that we can get it in, we’re going to stock it, and it’s going to be at a comparable price like other large pet stores.
"I’m not going to be marking up too much, it’s going to be the same price – so no one’s going to expect to pay another ten dollars for food because that’s unfair.
“We want things to be accessible and affordable,” she said.
Jordan said getting the store up and running has been a smooth process so far, with only a few things left to take care of, including shelf installation and product ordering.
She said she is currently working with around eight different distributors to ensure the centre is well-stocked for its grand opening – with an eye toward the first or second week of August for doors to officially open.
“I want to be able to provide that one-stop-shop feeling,” Jordan said.
“I’m just so excited to have those honest conversations with pet owners about their pets and what they like.
"We’re excited to help serve the community, to meet everyone and everyone’s pets . . . and to start our journey in improving and closing the gap for animal health and welfare.”