Leis Pet Distribution is 25!

By: Craig Brummell – CEO – Essex Top Crop and PIJAC Canada Board Chairman

I had the pleasure of exhibiting at the Leis Pet Distribution at their open house recently. They are a customer of mine and to whom we sold our distribution business to two years ago.   Their Open house is an annual event. This year they expanded it as they hosted a special open house on the Saturday for the public to attend to celebrate their 25^th year in business and had the ribbon cutting ceremony for their 52,000 sq. ft warehouse expansion.

Gary Leis, President and CEO of Leis Pet Distributing Inc. welcomed shareholders, vendor partners, past and current employees, new addition contractors and sub-trades. Dignitaries brought celebratory greetings from the Township, Region and the Government of Canada.  “I would never have guessed back in 1994, when we started operating out of a 9,000S sq. ft.  wooden structure, that over the next 25 years, we would add 6 more additions totally 125,000.0 sq. ft.  While our warehouse is based in Waterloo Region we have expanded well beyond our local borders, supplying independent pet stores from Thunder Bay, Ont. all the way to St. John’s, N.L. We serve over 850 stores in Ontario, using our own trucks in Central and Southwestern Ontario and common carriers in Eastern and Northern Ontario. Under the name of Atlantic Pet Distributing, we reach 130 stores in the Atlantic Provinces from our warehouse in Moncton, N.B and we have a strategic partnership with a Quebec-based distributor, Gastronome, who services over 600 stores”. Gary stated.

I believe it was their largest open house to date and was proud to be a part of it.  This event was an excellent example of promoting the companion animal concept and care in Canada by a company that is “all in” on pets.  Congratulations to our member Leis Pet Distribution on their 25^th anniversary!