Petstock Pty Limited and Woolworths Group Limited

The ACCC has accepted a court enforceable undertaking from Petstock Pty Limited (Petstock) in relation to Petstock’s completed acquisitions.

Petstock is Australia’s second largest specialty pet retailer and offers a broad range of pet products and services in-store and online. Between 2017 and 2022, Petstock completed numerous acquisitions that were not notified to the ACCC.

During its enforcement investigation of the completed acquisitions, the ACCC had significant concerns that four of Petstock’s past acquisitions may have contravened section 50 of the Competition and Consumer Act. These were its acquisitions of Best Friends Pets, Pet City, Animal Tuckerbox and Pet & Aquarium Warehouse in Eltham. 

Petstock offered to address the ACCC’s competition concerns by providing the ACCC with a section 87B undertaking.

Pursuant to the undertaking, Petstock will divest 41 specialty pet retail stores, 25 co-located veterinary hospitals, four brands and two online retail stores, including:

• Best Friends Pets and OurVet brands, including the Best Friends Pets website, plus 26 Best Friends Pets stores and 25 co-located veterinary hospitals in New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland and the Australian Capital Territory;
• My Pet Warehouse brand, including its online store, plus three My Pet Warehouse stores, with two located in Queensland and one in Western Australia (now Petstock Osborne Park)
• Pet City brand, plus 10 Pet City stores located in Western Australia
• Animal Tuckerbox store located in the CBD of Launceston, Tasmania (now Petstock Launceston Central)
• Pet & Aquarium Warehouse store located in Eltham, Victoria (now Petstock Eltham Central)

(the Divestiture Business).

The section 87B undertaking also requires Petstock to:

• ensure that the Divestiture Business is sold to an Approved Purchaser that will result in the creation or strengthening of a viable, effective, stand-alone, independent and long-term competitor in pet specialty retail on both a national basis and in local markets of concern,
• ensure the purchaser of the Divestiture Business has all the necessary associated assets and rights to compete effectively with Petstock in pet specialty retail,
• maintain the economic viability, marketability, competitiveness and goodwill of the Divestiture Business prior to divestiture, and
• provide for the effective oversight of Petstock’s compliance with the Undertaking.

Woolworths Group Limited (Woolworths) (ASX: WOW) has also provided the ACCC a court enforceable undertaking to procure Petstock’s compliance with the section 87B undertaking, following Woolworths’ acquisition of a 55% interest in Petstock. On 14 December 2023, the ACCC announced that it will accept the undertaking given by Woolworths and not oppose Woolworths’ proposed acquisition of a 55% interest in Petstock.