In the News
Saturday, May 14, 2005
Pet Stop: Runaway Hit
Electric pen may be mightier than the cord
By Joe Wessels
Enquirer contributor
BLUE ASH - The story of Perimeter Technologies Inc. is a story of an entrepreneur overcoming adversity.
Twelve years ago, founder Robert Slattery began selling his Pet Stop devices. For years sales were slow and customer complaints were high as he worked out malfunctions with the devices.
In addition, competition from market leaders such as Garrett, Ind.-based Invisible Fence was fierce.
But business has picked up in the last two years—50 percent sales growth annually—as Slattery has worked out kinks in the technology and addressed customer service issues.
Now Perimeter claims $12 million in annual sales. It has ramped up production from 2,000 units in 2002 to an anticipated 12,000 units in 2005 - with more expansion on the horizon.
Slattery, the company’s CEO and sole owner, credits his recent growth with hiring Invisible Fence founder John Purtell as president of his company.
“The idea was to create a better product and a better and more responsive company to the dealer,” Purtell said. “And it worked.”
Though Purtell sold his partnership interest in Invisible Fence in 1992—the same year Slattery got started—and went into the golf cart business, he was drawn back in the late 1990s because of the potential he still saw in the industry. He also believed customers were being underserved - and that he could do something to fix that.
Now his success at Invisible Fence is his biggest hurdle.
”That’s a tough brand name to overcome,” he said. “Some (Pet Stop) dealers say I did too good of a job with my old company.”
Keeping current
Wireless pet containment systems require dogs and cats to wear a collar that sends a corrective electric shock through a battery-operated radio collar when tripped by an underground wire. The idea for such a system wasn’t Purtell’s idea. He bought the patent from inventor Richard Peck, whom he met at a trade show and who died in 2000. He called his invention “Stay Put” and at the time had only sold a dozen systems. That was 1973.
Purtell began to sell the product as Invisible Fence, and the company took off.
In 2001, after several years away from the pet containment business, Purtell was looking for a new opportunity. To capitalize on some of his previous success, Purtell went looking for another company with a product he could private-label. He was introduced to Slattery.
Purtell liked what he saw, including several patents the company held, and came to work for Perimeter.
“(Slattery) had features and functions none of the other dealers had,” Purtell said. “We shared the same kind of philosophies, and it fell into place very naturally.”
Purtell’s arrival began an upswing in the company. Average annual growth has exceeded 110 percent with the roster of dealers expanding—now at 85—projected to grow by 20 percent each year, Slattery said.
The devices are produced at a 5,000-square-foot Morgantown, Pa. facility, where Purtell spends about half his time. The company employs 15 people, three here and the rest in Pennsylvania. The systems are sold online and through dealers around the country.
Despite the recent increased success, Pet Stop ranks itself third or fourth in the estimated $300 million pet fence industry. On top is still Invisible Fence, with Knoxville, Tenn.-based PetSafe and Natick, Mass.-based DogWatch. Competition is fierce, but Perimeter believes it can take the lead in two to five years, Slattery said.
Tales of ‘whoa’
Most veterinarians believe sending an electric pulse to a pet is a humane way to correct unwanted behavior such as running outside of a yard. Some even recommend the systems, said Ric Berlinski, a veterinarian at Colerain Animal Clinic.
“I think if the owners take the time to acclimate and train the dogs to the system like they’re supposed to they are very, very good for most dogs,” Berlinski said. “When we find that if the systems don’t work it’s that the owner didn’t take the time.”
Berlinski added that owners must also practice with their pets about every six weeks to remind them how the fence system works. He likened it to taking a dog to obedience school and carrying the lessons back home.
“It’s the same thing - you need to reinforce them,” he said.
The shock that the animals receive equates to the sensation of touching a metal doorknob with static electricity built up, he said. It’s enough to alert the dog but doesn’t hurt.
“It causes mild discomfort,” he said. “It just makes them go ‘whoa’.”
