The pet retail industry is undergoing a comprehensive transformation—from product sales to service consumption, and from standalone operations to ecosystem collaboration. At this pivotal moment, the CIPS International Pet Retail & Service Conference makes its grand debut.

Date: November 12, 2026
Venue: China Import and Export Fair Complex, Guangzhou
Theme: Redefining Retail & Service Value · Building a Human-Pet Friendly New Ecosystem

Co-hosted by the China International Pet Show (CIPS) and Shifang Forum, the conference focuses on core topics including global trends, retail upgrading, service innovation, scenario development, human-pet friendly spaces, and industrial ecosystem growth. Bringing together industry leaders from around the world, it charts a course for the high-quality development of China's pet industry.

This conference marks a landmark event in the transformation and upgrading of China's pet retail and service sector. Its four core values reveal the future direction of the industry.

01 Filling an Industry Gap – Creating a Premium, Dedicated Exchange Platform

Domestic pet industry exhibitions and forums have long focused on upstream supply chains, brand sourcing, and cross-border trade, leaving the terminal retail and pet service sectors without a professional, top-tier exchange platform.

Co-created by CIPS and Shifang Forum, this cross-sector collaboration gives China's pet retail and service industry its first dedicated platform that combines exhibition-level influence with forum-grade professionalism.

The timing is impeccable: in 2025, the top 30 pet service chains generated RMB 10.6 billion in annual revenue—yet that accounts for only 3.4% of the RMB 312.6 billion pet market. Persistent challenges such as low chain penetration, weak concentration, information fragmentation, and disjointed methodologies make this conference a timely and systematic response to these gaps.

02 Aligning with Industrial Transformation – Solving Structural Development Challenges

The pet industry is shifting from "commodity-driven" to "relationship-driven" operations. Stores are no longer mere points of sale; diverse business formats—grooming, live animals, training, boarding, pet parks, hotels, human-pet friendly spaces, and more—are booming, and new consumption scenarios and service ecosystems are reshaping the industry landscape.

Expanding and upgrading consumer demand is forcing industry change: in 2025, spending in China's urban dog and cat market reached RMB 312.6 billion, up 4.1% year-on-year; pet service consumption in the first half of the year hit RMB 19.2 billion, and the number of pet stores nationwide exceeded 96,000. Consumer demographics are also shifting—post-90s and post-00s generations now account for over 60% of pet owners, and their expectations have evolved from "keeping pets alive" to "caring for pets well," driving quality improvements across all segments.

Yet significant pain points remain: service consumption continues to grow, but the industry lacks unified standards and service norms. This conference directly addresses this need by establishing professional dialogue mechanisms and fostering industry consensus and methodological frameworks.

03 Connecting Global Resources – Empowering Local High-Quality Development

The global pet industry has entered a phase of deep competition involving supply chain optimization, compliance development, channel upgrading, and brand globalization.

With a global outlook grounded in China's realities, the conference invites industry leaders from Hong Kong, Macao, Taiwan, and overseas to gather in Guangzhou, creating a two-way channel for international expertise and local practice. Committed to an "international perspective, local implementation" approach, the conference curates overseas best practices that are adaptable to the Chinese market and consumer habits, offering practitioners actionable, replicable, and profitable forward-looking business strategies to help the industry escape homogenized competition.

04 Advancing Human-Pet Friendliness – Turning a Concept into Industry Consensus

The conference adopts "Building a Human-Pet Friendly New Ecosystem" as its core theme, driving human-pet friendliness from concept to industry-wide standards and consensus.

Consumer trends already confirm this direction: in 2025, prescription pet food sales surged 290% year-on-year, therapeutic drugs grew 80%, and mood-soothing products accelerated over 90%. Meanwhile, more than 30 million pets will enter their senior years over the next three years, making health care, emotional well-being, and friendly environment development urgent industry needs.

The conference will focus on the deep integration of commercial real estate, public spaces, and the pet economy, exploring spatial design, service workflows, and business operations—providing critical support for the implementation of human-pet friendly scenarios and the establishment of industry standards.

Conclusion: Anchoring the Turning Point, Defining the Pet Industry's New Future

The 2026 CIPS International Pet Retail & Service Conference is a milestone event at a critical juncture in China's pet industry transformation. It fills the professional exchange gap in the retail and service sectors, responds to the industry's structural shifts, bridges global resources, and turns the vision of human-pet friendliness into tangible industrial practice.

Focus on retail upgrading, deepen service value, and co-build a new human-pet balance. November 2026, Guangzhou—join us in embracing new opportunities for the pet industry.

Note: The full conference agenda and list of distinguished speakers will be announced soon. Please stay tuned.