As shares of Pet Valu Holdings Ltd. are trading lower following its latest earnings release, the company’s top executive says it was impacted by shifting consumer demand. 

Pet Valu shares were trading more than 10 per cent lower Tuesday afternoon after the company reported net income of $24.1 million for its second quarter, down from $25.3 million a year earlier. Revenue hit $256.4 million during the second quarter, rising from $227.7 million a year earlier. 

Richard Maltsbarger, the president and chief executive officer of Pet Valu, said in a news release that the company experienced a “recent shift in consumer demand.” 

“We've seen really strong continued growth in our food business [and] our cat litter business, the same monthly recurring purchases you come back every month for your pets,” Maltsbarger said in an interview with BNN Bloomberg Tuesday. 

“What we have seen is a little bit of a slowdown in our discretionary products, like bedding or crates or toys. Those things that you don't necessarily have to buy a new one right now, you could put it off for a few weeks or a few months.” 

Maltsbarger said that the company has been expecting some degree of normalization following a sharp rise in pet ownership during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

“Since our IPO [initial public offering] two years ago, we've been consistently saying that at some point the market would normalize back,” he said. 

“Long run, 35 plus years, the Canadian pet industry has grown about mid-single digits, so roughly six per cent per year, [and] we've had tremendous growth over the last three years.” 

As a result, Maltsbarger said the company has taken steps to adjust the business in anticipation of slower growth.

With files from The Canadian Press.