Articles &
Resources
Carol Frank has been a columnist for many pet industry publications over the years including APPA, Pet Business, Pet Age, and Pet Product News. This page contains many of the articles she has written in date order as well as articles from guest contributors.
Anatomy of a Pet M&A Deal
There’s hardly a day goes by we don’t hear about a pet company being bought, sold, or capitalized. We are so fortunate to work in a growing, vibrant, and desirable industry, and as such there is a great deal of interest from buyers for pet companies with a good story to tell.
The Difference between Venture Capital and Private Equity
There seems to be some confusion among pet industry entrepreneurs between the terms “Venture Capital” and “Private Equity”. They are often used interchangeably, when in fact these two methods of gaining access to capital are quite different. Given the number of times I hear people confuse the...
“Made in China” May Be a Thing of the Past
Partnering with Chinese manufacturers has been a significant factor in the explosive growth of the pet industry over the last 15 years. I don’t know what % of hard goods are made in China, but I’ll be it approaches 75% or more. When I owned my pet company, Avian Adventures, we moved our...
Pet Company Valuation: Zuke’s sold for HOW MUCH???
The pet industry is abuzz with rumors surrounding the huge multiple paid by Nestle for Zuke’s Pet Treats.
An Insider’s View of the Pet Product Distribution Landscape
I recently completed a research project to study the current and future landscape of the pet product distribution industry. Questions to be answered revolved around the active M&A activity and what does it mean for independent retailers, small distributors and manufacturers. It must be a hot...
A Crystal Ball into our Economic Future – a morning with Economist Brian Beaulieu – 2.0
Two years ago I wrote one of my first APPA e-update columns about the predictions of one of the U.S.’s foremost economists, Dr. Brian Beaulieu, Executive Director of the Institute for Trends Research (ITR). At the time, he predicted continued growth for the pet industry, which I am happy to say...
Article Categories
Practical Advice for Business Owners with No Time to Waste
A few years ago I was privileged to meet the producer of MSNBC’s show titled “Your Business” when he came to Dallas to interview me for one of their segments. Frank Silverstein is a real pro at interviewing entrepreneurs and getting them to share their successes and failures. I was delighted when he contacted me recently about his upcoming book titled: Think Small… Grow Big: Practical Advice for...
Raising Equity through Crowdfunding: Finally, Another Alternative!
“I have this amazing pet product that I just launched at Global Pet. The response has been nothing short of fantastic and the orders are rolling in. We are still very small, too small to get a bank loan but I need money for inventory and infrastructure. Can you help me?” As an investment banker for pet companies, I get at least 3 or 4 of these requests a month. It’s exciting that I am in an...
A Tool for Encouraging Employees to Act like Owners
Want more commitment, loyalty, and productivity out of your best employees? Give them some skin in the game. This article is about a special program for your “top dog” team members – The Equity Participation Program. Your best employees are your company’s most valuable asset, and the EPP is a way to help ensure that they will want to stick with you to help your company grow. In my experience,...
The Ins and Outs of Pet Product Licensing: Is it for you?
The e-mail I received a few years ago from Joshua Jones (*) was intriguing: He was eager to talk with me about helping monetize his revolutionary new cat litter box idea. Joshua is typical of many inventors who have a great idea but no intention of becoming a pet product mogul. They just want to build the proverbial “better mousetrap.” In Joshua’s case, he was trying to find a way to keep...
Minimizing your Taxes Under a Cloud of Uncertainty
Recently there has been a rash of pet business owners asking me “Carol, given the uncertainty regarding the capital gains tax, should I sell my company in 2012?” It’s a highly valid question given that the top tax rate on capital gains will rise from 15% to as high as 23.8% in 2013 - an increase of almost 60%. Bush-era tax cuts are set to expire at the end of the...
Why is Private Equity so interested in the pet industry and is your company a candidate?
I get at least one contact a week from a private equity firm that wants to invest in the pet industry. As politely as I can, I tell them to line up behind the other 50+ firms I have on my list that would like to invest in pet. As owners of manufacturing companies, you probably get many of these calls as well. So I decided to delve into the question of “why is private equity so interested in...
Will Customers Really Buy this? Ask an Advisory Council!
As a pet industry consultant and entrepreneur, one thing I am continually amazed at is the amount of money thrown at unproven products – many of which end up failing. This was top of mind this past week as I sat through a fascinating presentation by the Director of Innovation for Del Monte Pet Foods, Geoff Tanner. Geoff took us through the process of how they launched their new line of dog...
Women Pet Industry Pioneers: Stephanie Volo, CEO of Planet Dog
This article is first in a series of interviews with some of the pet industry’s most powerful and influential women. Today, I am very excited to present my recent interview with Stephanie Volo, co-founder and CEO of Planet Dog. Stephanie is the Top Dog and co-owner of Planet Dog, the socially responsible and award-winning dog products company. As their fearless leader and company ambassador,...
Back from the Brink: Gaining Inspiration from Apple, Rob Lowe, Avian Adventures, and others
STEVE JOBS AND APPLE, INC. As I mentioned in one of my recent articles, I recently finished Walter Isaacson’s fascinating biography on Steve Jobs. While I found it highly entertaining, I was also on the lookout for business lessons that I could share with my readers and clients. The most glaring lesson? You can pretty much be comatose, on your last breath, left for dead, and then end up as...
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