The markets may be volatile, but with the 140th Westminster Kennel Club Annual Dog Show' on Monday, one thing's for sure: Even in an uneven economy, people will spend money on their pets.
One company hopes to capitize on that: FreshPet (FRPT), which sells all-natural, minimally processed meat-based pet food. The company has embraced the organic-everything zeitgeist that made for a strong debut when it came public in November 2014. But the stock has suffered in the aftermarket since.
CEO Richard Thompson told Yahoo Finance, though, that the company remains well positioned to take advantage of growing spending on pets. Americans spend about $60 billion a year on their furry friends, with about half of that on food. As the pet population grows and the food we feed them gets fancier (not to mention doggy day care, dog hotels, grooming services, etc.), FreshPet should benefit, Thompson said.
[Read more: My dog is a crook]
Thompson said his company is levered to two important trends -- health and welness, and the "humanization of pets" -- they're part of the family. (This includes my new French bulldog puppy, Pierre Sinclair, pictured below.)
FreshPet currently sells to about 15,000 stores, including big-box retailers Walmart, Target and Petco. Thomson sees that number rising to 35,000.
