Planet Paws Pet Essentials recognized as leading retailer

Top Left to Right: Councillor of Dartmouth East, Darren Fisher / Manager of Planet Paws, Mandie Richard / CEO of Pet Lynx, Larry Evans / Pet Nutrition Blogger and Founder of Planet Paws, Rodney Habib / Co-Owner of Planet Paws and my Father, George Habib / The Nova Scotia Minister of Energy & Communications, Andrew Younger / Assistant Manager of Planet Paws, Ashley Jewer / 

Bottom Left to Right: Planet Paws Blogger, Sarah MacKeigan / Planet Paws Blogger, Lise Blinn.

Retailers are quickly learning the importance of commanding both physical and online presence. With more and more consumers shopping online and using the web for information, social media plays a vital role in brand recognition and retail sustainability. 

The Summit Award for Retailer recognizes a retailer of pet products and services who has developed a reputation and frequent connection to pet families that has enhanced the lives of pets and people in the community(ies) they serve. In 2013, three Canadian retailers vied for this award. On October 18, the 2013 Retailer honour was won by Planet Paws Pet Essentials with 54% of ballots cast. 

Planet Paws owner and manager, Rodney Habib, launched his pet nutrition social media page as a means to research and educate pet parents after his own pets were affected by tainted pet food. Today, the Planet Paws Facebook page has nearly 12,000 'Likes' and reaches and audience of 168,000 each week. This level of traffic has been achieved in just over a year. 


The shop's physical presence in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, hosts community events and store initiatives to raise funds for local schools, education programs, animal shelters and community initiatives. 

As a member of the Pet Industry Joint Advisory Council of Canada and the American Pet Products Association, Rodney Habib has been recognized globally as a leader in pet nutrition and retail. His podcast for Rogers Communication, In the Dish, has become the largest pet podcast in Canada with 150,000 listeners each week. In addition to being recognized by the Nova Scotia Legislature, Habib writes for Dogs Naturally Magazine and is cast as one of the experts on a TV reality show called Fat Dog Fit Dog, which is currently filming in Nova Scotia. 

Planet Paws fundraisers contributed $75,000 to a local off-leash park, $15,000 to community rebuild programs, $5,000 to local schools and $5,000 and 9,000lbs of food to rescue organizations. Habib has also been recognized provincially by the Boys & Girls Club of Canada and received the Golden Apple Award from Nova Scotia for educating children on pet health and well-being. 

With these achievements, it is no wonder Rodney Habib and his colleagues at Planet Paws have garnered the highest level of recognition from their peers in the Urban Animal Industry.  

Visit UrbanAnimal.com for more information on Summit Awards and past winners.