PetSmart to Acquire 19 Super Pet Stores in Eastern Canada

PetSmart to Acquire 19 Super Pet Stores in Eastern Canada

PHOENIX, AZ -- (MARKET WIRE) -- 02/15/07 -- PetSmart, Inc. (NASDAQ: PETM), North America's largest specialty pet retailer, plans to acquire 19 Super Pet retail stores in 17 Eastern Canadian communities.

The company reached an agreement in principle to acquire the assets of substantially all the retail business conducted under the Super Pet name, including the leases, inventory, property and intellectual property. The deal is subject to the parties entering into a definitive agreement and the satisfaction of standard closing conditions and certain regulatory approvals. The transaction is expected to close within 60 days following the execution of the definitive agreement. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

The acquisition is consistent with PetSmart's strategy to add 100 net new stores system-wide in 2007, according to PetSmart Chairman and CEO Philip L. Francis.

"The addition of these 19 stores to our strong Canadian portfolio expands our presence and reach in key markets and allows us to leverage our infrastructure across the region," Francis said. "Super Pet stores are solid performers and they share very similar core-value passions for customer service and the well being of pets."

A Canadian presence since 1996, PetSmart currently operates 33 retail stores in four provinces. With the exception of one store in Alberta, all the stores to be acquired are located in Ontario. PetSmart expects to re-brand the acquired stores under its name by late summer 2007. (Seven additional stores operating under the Super Pet and Super Pet Express name are not part of the purchase agreement. They will continue to operate under present ownership, but will be re-branded under a new name following the closing of the proposed transaction.)

The proposed purchase agreement does not include any planned store closures. PetSmart anticipates providing job opportunities to approximately 600 employees working at the Super Pet stores being acquired.

PetSmart, Inc. (NASDAQ: PETM) is the largest specialty pet retailer of services and solutions for the lifetime needs of pets. The company operates more than 885 pet stores in the United States and Canada, a growing number of in-store PetsHotel cat and dog boarding facilities, and is a leading online provider of pet supplies and pet care information (www.petsmart.com). PetSmart provides a broad range of competitively priced pet food and pet products; offers complete pet training, pet grooming, pet boarding, doggie day camp and pet adoption services; and provides a full line of horse supplies, including equestrian apparel and tack, through State Line Tack. Since 1994, PetSmart Charities, Inc., an independent 501(c)(3) non-profit animal welfare organization, has donated more than $42 million to animal welfare programs and, through its in-store pet adoption programs, has saved the lives of more than 2.8 million pets.

Super Pet Stores to be Purchased by PetSmart, Inc.

Store # Name Address City
21 Orion Gate 547 Street Avenue East Brampton
22 Emerald Plaza 1547 Merivale Road Nepean
23 Hyde Park Gate 2501 Hyde Park Gate Oakville
24 Burlington 1059 Plains Road East Burlington
25 Crossroads Centre 765 Exeter Road London
26 Cambridge 600 Hespeler Road, Unit 68B Cambridge
27 Belleville 274 Cloverleaf Dr. RR5 # 203 Belleville
28 Sarnia 1379 London Road Sarnia
29 Thunder Bay 878 Memorial Avenue Thunder Bay
30 Kennedy Commons 12 William Kitchen Drive Scarborough
31 West Edmonton 18423 Stony Plain Road NW Edmonton
Common
32 Trinity Common 70 Great Lakes Dr. Unit 148A Brampton
34 Kanata Centrum 255 Kanata Avenue Kanata
35 Barrhaven 3161 Greenbank Rd Unit 64 Nepean
36 St. Catherines 420 Vansickle Road St. Catherines
38* Mississauga Winston Churchill & 401 Mississauga
39 Kitchener 655 Fairway Rd S. Unit E1B Kitchener
40 Windsor Gateway Plaza, 3164 Dougall Ave. Windsor
41 Orleans 2002 Mer Bleue Rd Unit 6 Orleans

*Store scheduled to open summer 2007



Super Pet and Super Pet Express Stores Excluded in Acquisition

Store # Name Address City
33 Yonge Street 3291 Yonge Street Toronto
37 Richmond 4551 No. 3 Road Kitchener


(Super Pet Express)
Store # Name Address City
101 Milton 1290 Steeles Ave. East, Unit C4 Milton
Crossroads SC
102 First Baystone 462 Bayfield Street, Unit E1 Barrie
Shopping Cntr
103 Mayfield Common 294 Mayfield Common Edmonton
104 Terwillegar 14211 - 23rd Avenue, Bldg E Edmonton
Gardens
105 1000 Islands 2399 Parkedale Ave. Unit 28B Brockville
Mall
 
As an employee with Super Pet I was pretty proud of my own store and what contributions I personally had been making and I had realized that there is quite a career within the franchise and was in the process of making one. On the flip side I have never liked Petsmart. Superpet was a chain, no denying it, but each store was individual, each store proved they were best and strive to better themselves- unlike the uniform giant corporation that is Petsmart. Hundreds times hundreds of stores compared to a humble 19 that were part of the Super Pet chain. Employees are "promised" that their positions are secure but what they mean to say is that our employment is secure, but our positions will be messed beyond recognition.

I won't be a Don Quixote per se, but I'm not happy to be bought, even if it is by the most powerful pet company in the world.
 
Back
Top Bottom