Pandemic pet bonanza sparks expansion plans for animal food seller Jollyes with 150 new jobs

Pet food seller Jollyes will create 150 jobs at 20 shops to deal with demand from Britons who bought animals during the pandemic.

It has enjoyed significant growth over the past two years and is accelerating its plans by opening the sites within the next 18 months.

Some will be opened after buying smaller rivals, while others will be brand new. Revenue at the retailer, which has 67 shops, shot up by 21pc in the last three months compared to the same quarter two years earlier.

‘We’ve enjoyed a very successful year with sensational progress,’ said executive chairman Richard Cotter. ‘And we’re excited about our future. We’ve worked hard to build a strong platform that will allow us to do much more – better stores, wider ranges and further investment in people.’

The Pet Food Manufacturers’ Association says 3m households have got a pet since the pandemic started. There are now around 12m cats and 12m dogs in homes across the UK.

Jollyes said that it had seen a 50pc rise in sales of birds such as canaries. Reptile sales had risen 14pc , it added.