Well, mostly.

"I just wanted to do something on my own, but I also knew that I didn't know how to do that," she says.

That's where she came up with the idea of opening a franchise that could support her by helping get a business off the ground. Searching the Internet and franchise magazines, Bradley eventually found Petland, an Ohio-based chain with 190 stores. Bringing a Petland store to Wichita, she thought, would allow her to combine her love of animals -- she has three cats and two dogs -- with a new career.

On Nov. 19, Bradley opened Wichita's first Petland store, at 11333 E. Kellogg in One Kellogg Place. Petland employs 20 people, and Bradley says she plans to hire a few more soon. At the store, people can buy kittens, rabbits, fish, birds and other small animals.

But the majority of the 7,470-square-foot store is taken up by small and medium-sized puppies. Petland has some mixed breeds, but makes most of its money on purebred puppies it sells for up to $3,500 each. Because of the high price of some of the animals, owners are allowed to finance the payments. So far, the store has sold about 70 puppies.

Between a Small Business Administration loan and her own capital, Bradley spent about $1 million getting the business started. The corporate office helped with the building lease and setting up the buying program.

Bradley buys the dogs from Missouri-based Hunt Corp., which buys from breeders in the Midwest. And she uses the veterinary services of Wichita's Kutter Pet Care Center for the store's animals.

Although opening a pet store sounded like a lot of fun, Bradley didn't enter into the decision lightly.

Initially I was drawn to it because it seemed like something I would enjoy doing, she says. "Then I started doing the research."

That research included studying Petland's business model and looking at other stores in Wichita. She considers Gupton's Pets & Supplies Inc. her main competitor and visited it to see how it was operated.

Jim Whitman, director of franchise development for Petland, says he was more than happy to bring Petland to Wichita.

"We will go anywhere that there's not already a Petland," he says. "It doesn't matter to us how many pet stores there are."

He thinks Petland's business model stands up to its competitors because it employs well-trained pet handlers who take the time to explain to customers what they need to know about owning a pet. Petland had been looking for a franchisee, he says, and was pleased when Bradley showed interest.

Cammy Lees, manager of Gupton's, says having Petland in town is good because the stores have different models of operation. Gupton's prices its dogs from $250 to $950, and it sells more mixed breeds than purebreds.

Lees says animal shelters often refuse to sell dogs, for example, to someone who lives in an apartment. She says there's a need in Wichita for pet stores that don't have the same restrictions.

"There are a lot of individuals who are in the market for puppies," Lees says.

Source:Wichita Biz Journal