The Preuss family has been in the pet business since the 1960s when Rick Preuss’ mother opened a small fish store in the family’s home. Half a century later,
Old Town’s Preuss Pets is celebrating its 30-year anniversary as the premier pet store in the region.
The 25,000 square foot location on Grand River began in 1982 as a 2,000 square foot shop in Haslett.
“For the first year and a half it was pretty much a family-run store,” says Preuss. “I thought it was the greatest profession ever. Soon enough, we started growing, from our understanding of what it is that people really need, to what it takes to run a successful family business.”
Preuss Pets now has 70 employees and is continuing to grow. The staff has increased by 10 percent over the last two years, and two to three new part-time staffers will be hired when construction on the store’s new pond, water garden and waterfall area is completed in May.
Preuss credits his business’ continued growth to his family’s commitment to not only their customers, but also their pets.
“It’s helping pets help people,” he says. “The pets are the stars of the show. Our job is to understand what the animals needs and to understand how to relate that to people so they can see those needs.”
Preuss Pets celebrated their anniversary with special events and activities in April.
“Celebrating the anniversary will go throughout the year,” Preuss says. “I hope we can continue to have this gift to share with the community for another 30 years.”
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