And to think I thought it would be as simple ss :

I don' t mind/ like/ look forward to seeing a store pet

OR

I don' t like store pets ( for whatever reason) and avoid shopping in stores that have them.

bwahahaha. You should know better. :p

I feel so sorry for people with pet alergies. They miss out on all the love and comfort a pet can give.
Have only been in two stores with cats in them and so enjoyed seeing them.

Store owners do things that alienate customers ALL THE TIME. Catering to one group often alienates another.

I recently took up archery, and one of the two local archery shops is very hunter-oriented. Everything in their shop, from their logo & decor to the practice targets you shoot at, has to do with killing animals. I'm a vegetarian and animal lover, so this bothers me. So, I go to the other archery shop, which is further away but has standard bulls-eye practice targets and seems to cater more towards the hobbyist. Should shop #1 stop catering to hunters in order to suit me? No. Is their business suffering? Doesn't appear so. They appear to attract plenty of customers who DO like to hunt with bow and arrow. That's the demographic they are catering to.

I believe there IS a demographic of people who enjoy animals in shops. I'm one of those people. All things being equal, a shop with a cat gets my business more than a shop without, because I really LIKE animals and for me, visiting with the shop cat (or dog) makes the shopping trip extra enjoyable. (This assumes a certain amount of housekeeping; I do agree a litter box odor is not going to encourage me to return; but that's true for any foul odor regardless of the source.)

You're never going to appeal to 100% of the population. A business owner has to constantly gauge interest and it's always a moving target. If I had my own used book store (a perennial fantasy of mine) I would DEFINITELY have a store cat. Those decisions are one of the perks of being a business owner! For better or for worse.

That's exactly what I did. I bought a pattern and some notions there. I love that they have magazines for 40% off so I will go back for that too.

I have been sewing for well over 50 years and purchasing fabric , clothing, sheets, blankets,towels and many other things made of fabric, NOTHING gets used or worn that is not washed first this includes dishes, if it is washable it is washed![QUOTE I agree almost every thing we use or ware comes from another country, who knows where it has been!?!=RainyBC;6598358]I don't own a cat, but it wouldn't bother me. As soon as I come in the door, all fabric goes into the washer the same as bed sheets or any other item that may be close to the skin. Then, whether it's cats or whatever else that could be in the fabric is washed (hopefully) away. Most, if not all of these fabrics come from other countries in containers so who knows what they have been exposed to. Toby Bean can come to my house anytime too, my Penny would to play with him.[/QUOTE]

I have been sewing for well over 50 years and purchasing fabric , clothing, sheets, blankets,towels and many other things made of fabric, NOTHING gets used or worn that is not washed first this includes dishes, if it is washable it is washed![QUOTE I agree almost every thing we use or ware comes from another country, who knows where it has been!?!=RainyBC;6598358]I don't own a cat, but it wouldn't bother me. As soon as I come in the door, all fabric goes into the washer the same as bed sheets or any other item that may be close to the skin. Then, whether it's cats or whatever else that could be in the fabric is washed (hopefully) away. Most, if not all of these fabrics come from other countries in containers so who knows what they have been exposed to. Toby Bean can come to my house anytime too, my Penny would to play with him.[/QUOTE][/QUOTE]

tooooooo true.

guess i'll have to close this down.