By Phil Corso
There is a new one-stop shop fulfilling the needs for all of Fresh Meadows’ four-legged friends.
The Unleashed by Petco shop, at 61-23 190th St. in the Fresh Meadows Shopping Center, just wrapped up three event-filled weekends to mark its grand opening filled with giveaways, discounts and more.
Store manager Rodney Zayas said the new storefront brought a level of pet care that dog and cat lovers in Queens have not seen in a long time.
“We have been crazy busy,” he said. “It’s like we are a new brand and people just want to see what we’re all about.”
Unleashed offers a wide range of dog and cat products including food, travel gear, toys and more. Workers also offer pet training and host in-store events like vaccination clinics and adoption drives to make sure animals are paired with the right owners.
And in the few weeks since the store opened, Zayas said Unleashed had become a pet haven. Owners are invited to bring their cats and dogs shopping with them so they can pick their treats firsthand, Zayas said.
“On some weekends, you might see more dogs than humans walking these aisles,” he said.
But what makes the store unique, Zayas said, is its self-service washing stations.
Tucked away in the back of the shopping center, Zayas smiled ear-to-ear as he toured the self-washing stations, which he said were the first to hit the city. Unlike the more traditional pet-washing stations at your typical pet supply store, Zayas said owners at his store would not need to hand their furry friends to strangers for cleaning. Instead, the hose is put into their hands for only $10, he said.
“Customers have been really excited about this,” Zayas said of the self-washing station. “They love it back here.”
Most regular Petco shops also feature live animals in the store, but Zayas said the borough’s first Unleashed storefront opted out of such offerings so it could instead focus on customer service for pet lovers. Zayas, who owns a Yorkie-Poodle mix named Snoopy, said he and his staff of 14 workers sported the names of their pets on their name tags to show they are invested in animal care.
“I want people here to interact and know that they can feel comfortable buying their products here,” he said. “This is a neighborhood store.”
The Unleashed by Petco shop is open Monday through Saturday from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. and Sundays from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. For more information, call 858-453-7845.
Reach reporter Phil Corso by e-mail at pcorso@cnglocal.com or by phone at 718-260-4573.
