What’s one amazing thing about writing a business plan to open a pet retail store in 2025? You can likely write it in just a few days instead of months! 👀

That’s exactly what happened when Pet Boss Nation’s CEO, Candace D’Agnolo, wrote her business plan for Dante & Dory’s Pet Emporium! Many aspiring pet business owners might spend months struggling with business plans, or they may not have one at all.  Candace leveraged AI and her industry expertise to create a 20-page business plan that had bankers blown away when she needed to apply for a business loan. 

In Part One, we followed Candace from recognizing the opportunity to open Dante & Dory’s through taking the leap. Now we’re diving into the nitty-gritty details of turning that vision into a fundable business plan and securing the resources needed to open a pet retail store successfully.

It’s time to move beyond the dreaming phase and start building something real, and this guide for opening a pet retail store will show you exactly how to create a business plan that gets results!

How to build momentum before you even open your pet retail store

You might think you need everything perfectly in place before you start talking about your business,  but Candace took the opposite approach and started building momentum immediately.

Even without a final logo, color scheme, or grand opening date, she was already:

Meeting with her future team at the local library. Yes, she was paying her future employees for training sessions before the store even opened! While many business owners resist spending money before revenue comes in, Candace knew that investing in her team early would pay off big time. 

Getting media attention. One social media post led to a local radio interview, which led to TV interest, which led to press coverage. The momentum built organically because she wasn’t waiting for the “perfect” moment to start sharing.

Building an email list. She created a simple website for about $21/month and started collecting emails from interested customers. Within weeks, she had 70 people signed up for grand opening updates!

Don’t wait for perfection to start marketing your pet retail store! You can take steps to spread the word early on. 

Here are your action steps for building early momentum:

✅ Start sharing your journey on social media, even if you don’t have your branding figured out yet.

✅ Create a simple website to capture interested customers’ emails.

✅ Connect with local media. They love covering new local businesses!

✅ Begin training and working with your team as early as possible.

✅ Document your process with photos and videos for future marketing content.

Why you need a business plan to open a pet retail store (and when you’ll use it)

“Business plan” might sound intimidating. But when you’re applying for a bank loan, looking for investors, or applying for business grants, you’re going to need one.

But business plans aren’t just for getting money to fund your pet retail store! Candace found it helpful for: 

Hiring and onboarding. She exported her business plan and used it to help write job descriptions.

Marketing copy. Having all her business details organized made it faster to pull information for website copy, press releases, and social media

Strategic decisions. When questions came up about inventory, pricing, or services, she could reference her plan for guidance.

Confidence building. Going through the planning process helped her feel more prepared and confident about her decisions. 

A business plan can really be your roadmap for opening a pet retail store more strategically and confidently.

How AI helped write a business plan to open a pet retail store 

The last time Candace wrote a business plan was in 2006. 😱 That plan took about two months, involved lots of guesswork, and was written entirely in Microsoft Word at her parents’ house! 

Fast forward to 2025: 

She wrote a 20-page business plan in just a couple of days using AI! 

Here’s how she did it:

Step 1: Set up the AI partnership 

She used Claude.ai and started with this prompt: 

“I’m opening up a brick and mortar business for pets, their owners and pet professionals. It will include a variety of revenue streams and integrate with my coaching business that mentors pet business owners. I need help with writing my business plan to show the bank for financial lending to fund some construction needs, the inventory displays and marketing. Can I share more details of this with you? Please let me know what questions you also need answered to help me craft the best business plan.”

Step 2: Answer the AI’s strategic questions 

The AI immediately asked smart questions that made Candace think, like: 

• What are your primary revenue streams and their distribution?
• Have you done market research on local pet owner demographics?
• What’s your anticipated total investment needed?
• What’s your staffing plan and projected timeline?

Step 3: Feed more information gradually 

Instead of trying to answer everything at once, Candace had ongoing conversations with the AI, giving more details as questions came up. It led to a lot of critical thinking and thinking about angles she hadn’t considered! 

Step 4: Let AI structure and format everything 

The AI organized all their conversations into proper business plan sections with clean formatting and bullet points.

Editing was so MUCH easier when changes needed to be made. When she adjusted one number (like profit margins or sales projections), the AI automatically updated every related calculation throughout the entire document!

Your action steps for using AI to write your pet retail store business plan:

✅ Choose an AI platform like Claude.ai or ChatGPT

✅ Start with a clear overview of your business concept and funding needs

✅ Answer the AI’s questions thoroughly, but don’t worry if you don’t have all the answers initially

✅ Use the AI to audit your plan for inconsistencies or gaps

🌟Remember, AI speeds up the process, but you still need to use your industry research and human judgment to perfect it. 

Some sections you’ll need in your business plan when opening a pet retail store

Based on Candace’s successful business plan, here are the key sections that impressed the bankers: 

An executive summary. Including a vision for your pet retail store, market opportunities (like the Pet Supplies Plus closure in her community), competitive advantages, and a high-level financial overview (with your funding request). 

A business description. Include a mission statement, a revenue distribution breakdown, and some timeline information for opening your pet retail store (think Phase 1, Phase 2, and so on!) 

A market analysis. Like target customers, local pet owner demographics and income levels, pet industry professionals in your area, and tourism market potential. 

Marketing strategies. Like marketing plans for each target customer segment and how you plan to position and differentiate with branding. 

Financial projections. Candace presented THREE different scenarios for this! A conservative plan (if things moved slowly), a realistic plan (what she believes they can achieve), and an aggressive plan (with stretch goals). 

How to approach a bank loan meeting when opening a pet retail store

When Candace walked into that bank meeting with her business plan for Dante & Dory’s, the banker was blown away (and said most people come in with their business plan written on a napkin)! It set Candace apart to come in with financial projections, a break-even plan, and a very clear understanding of her market. 

This is your competitive advantage when you open a pet retail store! Most of your competition for funding isn’t coming prepared. A well-researched, professionally formatted business plan immediately sets you apart.

Having industry experience made it even more powerful. Candace could confidently answer questions about profit margins, inventory turnover, seasonal fluctuations, and customer behavior patterns.

Here are your action steps for prepping for a bank meeting when opening a pet retail store: 

✅ Create multiple financial scenarios to show you’ve thought through different outcomes

✅ Include a break-even analysis in your business plan

✅ Format everything professionally with clean sections and bullet points

✅ Prepare to answer detailed questions about industry metrics

✅ Bring supporting documents

What’s next in opening your pet retail store?

Opening a pet retail store can move from idea to funded faster than you might think. Get to know the industry, use technology to your advantage, and build momentum as much as possible starting NOW! 

Want to connect with other entrepreneurs who are opening pet retail stores? Join the Pet Boss Nation® community where you’ll find business owners at every stage of their journey, from brand new concepts to established multi-location businesses. Plus, get access to the tools, templates, and expert guidance that can help you through every step of the process! 

In part 3 of this series, we’ll be talking about the branding process and how to build a brand that will stand out in a crowd and serve your target market! 

More resources you’ll find helpful:

📍Opening a Pet Retail Store Part One: Acting on Opportunity

📍Pet Boss Podcast Episode 170 | Behind Closed Doors: Building a Pet Destination

📍Pet Boss Podcast Episode 176 | Writing a Pet Business Plan [Behind Closed Doors Series]