PRIVATE EQUITY OWNED
PetSmart
Includes Pet Smart
pet supplies · Phoenix, AZ
- PE Firm
- BC Partners →
- Year Acquired
- 2015
BC Partners loaded PetSmart with $8 billion in debt, then charged its groomers $5,000 to quit.
What They Did
- BC Partners bought PetSmart for $8.7 billion in 2015, the biggest retail buyout of that year, and started cutting costs immediately
- Spent $3.35 billion on Chewy in 2017 and piled the debt onto PetSmart — pushing the company past $8 billion
- A November 2021 Senate letter from Warren and Pocan pressed BC Partners over deteriorating worker conditions and a reported rise in pet deaths
- Groomers locked into 'Training Repayment Agreement Provisions' — charged $5,000 if they quit within two years
Since the Acquisition
- An NJ Advance Media investigation found at least 47 dogs died after grooming at PetSmart in the past decade — 32 since BC Partners took over in 2015
- A Vice investigation found understaffing left some store freezers filled with deceased animals for months — one California location had not cleared its freezer since February 2021
- Cut the senior groomers and trainers — the only staff trained to handle anxious, elderly, or aggressive dogs
- PetSmart cut 15% of its headquarters staff in June 2015, three months after BC Partners took over
Sources
- PetSmart grooming academy traps workers in debt — CBS News(2022-01-01)
- Warren Seeks Answers on Pet Deaths at PetSmart — U.S. Senate(2021-11-01)
- At Least 47 Dogs Died After Grooming at PetSmart — This Dog's Life(2021-06-01)
- Investigation: 47 dogs died after grooming at PetSmart — NJ Advance Media(2021-06-01)
- Some understaffed PetSmarts are dealing with freezers overfilled with dead pets — Vice(2022-03-01)