Local pet store owners in San Francisco’s Richmond District are grousing about plans to put a new PetCo chain store along a busy stretch of Geary Boulevard and will meet tonight to oppose the move.
“There are already four pet supply stores within 12 blocks of each other on Geary Boulevard, and five within a two-mile radius,” said John Todgya, owner of one of the stores, B&B Pet Supplies, in a statement.
He accused the chain of “making a move to put my store and the others out of business.”
Todgya and others who are upset about the plan to open a PetCo store at 5411 Geary Blvd. will attend a community meeting with representatives of the chain at the Richmond Recreation Center at 6:30 p.m.
“We’re not supportive of formula retail coming in and poaching business from small, locally owned stores,” said Kathleen Dooley, a member of the city’s Small Business Commission, in a statement.
The group also complained that as a national chain, much of PetCo’s profits would not stay in San Francisco, unlike local businesses, and said they were concerned about increased traffic on Geary Boulevard.
A PetCo spokesperson did not immediately return a call for comment today.
Ari Burack, Bay City News
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