News list

During the 2026 Spring Festival, pet-related consumption continued to thrive, becoming a key growth driver in the domestic holiday market. From pet holiday supplies and boarding service bookings to healthcare expenditures, demand exhibited both robust resilience and upgrading trends, further solidifying the industry's simultaneous growth in volume and pricing.

According to relevant data, the size of China's urban pet consumption market is expected to increase to 312.6 billion yuan by 2025, and is expected to exceed 405 billion yuan by 2028. The performance of the Spring Festival consumption peak season has become an important window to verify the resilience of the industry's development. According to data from e-commerce platforms, during the 2026 Spring Festival, the transaction volume of pet clothing, grooming and beauty products, and toys increased by 115.60%, 40.35%, and 18.51% year-on-year, respectively, with a record high consumption of related products. Among them, new categories such as limited edition pet food for the Year of the Horse, new Chinese style pet clothing, and pet New Year dinner have become consumer hotspots. According to data from Tmall platform, nearly 30 pet brands have launched limited edition products for the Year of the Horse, and the number of new Spring Festival products has increased by nearly 60% year-on-year.

On the server side, the demand for pet care continues to rise during the Spring Festival period. Affected by factors such as returning home for reunion, pet foster care and home feeding services have become essential. The reporter visited and learned that several pet stores in Jinan, Shandong have fully booked single rooms for foster care, and prices have increased compared to normal days. The daily average price of some high-end pet foster institutions exceeds 300 yuan, and the fees for on-site feeding services have also increased compared to normal days, but the market demand is still strong. The demand for disease prevention and control during foster care has also driven the growth of medical consumption such as pet vaccines and drugs.

From an overall industry perspective, the 2026 Spring Festival consumption data further confirms the structural changes in the pet industry. Domestic brands dominate the market share, with a clear trend of top concentration. In terms of consumption upgrading, pet staple food is undergoing a process upgrade from puffed food to baked food and freeze-dried food, with the mid to high end price range (60-100 yuan/kg) leading the growth rate. About 70% of cat owners tend to choose baked food, and the demand for functional food continues to rise. At the same time, policy support provides a safeguard for the development of the industry. Governments in cities such as Chengdu, Hangzhou, and Nanjing have introduced relevant policies to promote the development of the pet economy, which have been incorporated into local economic development plans.

In terms of listed companies, leading enterprises in various sub sectors have performed outstandingly. In the field of pet food, Guaibao Pet achieved a revenue of 4.737 billion yuan in the first three quarters of 2025, a year-on-year increase of 29.03%. Its own brand "Maifudi" and freeze-dried snack business maintained a high growth trend. Zhongchong Group's revenue for the same period was 1.428 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 15.56%, with overseas production capacity and domestic channels working together.

A securities research report maintains optimism about the development prospects of the pet industry. China International Capital Corporation (CICC) pointed out in its "Pet Economy Outlook for 2026" that China's pet food industry is still in a golden development period of both quantity and price, and is expected to maintain an annual growth rate of around 10%. The research report believes that by 2026, pet food leaders will continue to focus on increasing market share, with high-end and innovative capabilities becoming core competitiveness. Brands with the ability to continuously promote new products and form a reasonable product lineup will have an advantage in long-term competition.

According to a research report by CITIC Securities, the pet industry is transitioning from "traffic dividends" to "value cultivation". The accelerated process of compliance will drive the clearance of small and medium-sized retail brands, and leading enterprises will further seize market share with their compliance capabilities, supply chain advantages, and brand strength. In terms of segmented tracks, the specialization and preventive medicine of pet healthcare, the intelligence and refinement of pet supplies, and the rise of the exotic pet market will become new engines for future industry growth.

Industry insiders say that the hot consumption of pets during the 2026 Spring Festival not only reflects the deepening of pets' role as "family members", but also reflects the industry's transformation from scale expansion to high-quality development. With the rise of the new generation of pet owners, the continuous promotion of consumption upgrading, and the continuous improvement of product research and development, channel layout, and service system by listed companies, the pet economy is expected to continue to grow steadily and become an important supporting force in the domestic consumer market.