Pets at Home saw its like-for-like sales rise by 4.1% in its first quarter thanks to the popularity of its 'Very Important Pets' loyalty club.

Since the company opened 10 new stores, 16 veterinary practices and 19 Groom Rooms, Pets at Home saw its total revenue grow by 10.4% to £210.8 million in 16 weeks to  July 17th.  

After receiving 400,000 new members for its VIP Club, Pets at Home saw its like-for-like sales in the period make a total of 2.4 million, with an additional VIP card swipe increase of 57% in store revenues.

The company continued to invest in its website PetsAtHome.com by extending its functionality and increasing its range of products. Pets at Home are also currently rolling a ‘Deliver to Store’ delivery option which has been expected to be fully operational across all stores by the end of August.

The company said: “Given the strong first quarter performance, continued momentum in our VIP Club, the developing maturity of veterinary practices and Groom Rooms, and plans to further enhance our Advanced Nutrition offering in stores this Autumn, we remain confident in our expectations for the full financial year.”

Pets at Home chief executive Nick Wood added: "We are pleased with the start to our financial year, with first quarter like-for-like growth of 4.1%. Our differentiated offering in the pet retail market, an increasingly seamless approach to omni-channel, and growing customer participation and engagement in our VIP loyalty programme continues to drive strong returns.  

"We will continue to seize opportunities to grow and develop Pets At Home and focus on the delivery of our strategy. Given the strong first quarter performance, we remain confident in our expectations for the full financial year."