Reptile & Reptile Equipment Selling Business Survey 2025 Step 1 of 7 14% REPTA intends to survey reptile and reptile equipment selling businesses to take stock of the health of the sector. To be able to lobby government effectively we need as accurate a picture as possible about the scope of our industry. Whilst we may exclusively use the term ‘reptiles’ we also consider the sale of amphibians and invertebrates to be within scope. All entries are kept total anonymous and no data will be shared. Dataset collection is simply a tool to work out the median size/value of a reptile and reptile equipment selling business in the UK and extrapolate based upon the total amount of businesses believed to be engaged in such activity.Name(Required) First Last Business Name(Required)Email(Required) Business demographics and structure. Why is this important? To aid us in illustrating the robustness of the reptile industry by proving business trading longevity and health. The level of specialism allows us to understand the impact of legislative overreach to businesses that rely on the sales of reptiles.Business Type Sole Trader Partnership Limited Company Number of BranchesYears TradingBusiness Model Bricks and Mortar Store (no online sales) Bricks and Mortar Store (online store and sales) Online store trading from a warehouse without a physical store Business Specialism Reptiles Amphibians Invertebrates Fish Cage & Aviary Birds Parrots and other Psitticines Wild Fowl and Poultry Exotic Mammals (Pygmy Hedgehog, Chinchilla, Gambian Pouch Rat etc) Small Mammals (Mice, Rats, Hamster, Gerbil etc) Medium Mammals (Rabbits, Guinea Pigs) Dogs / Cats Please select all that apply.Considering ADULT display vivaria for reptiles how many enclosures does your business contain: 0-19 20-39 40-59 60-79 80-99 100-119 120-139 140-159 160-179 180-199 200+ Considering BABY & JUVENILE racking systems for reptiles how many enclosures (tubs) does your business contain: 0-49 50-99 100-149 150-199 200-249 250-299 300-349 350-399 400-449 450-499 500+ To be able to accurately estimate the population of animals held as stock in reptile centres across the UK what is the average number of each type of animal you hold in stock in your shop?SnakesLizardsTortoisesTurtlesAmphibiansInvertebrates Economic contribution and financial metrics Why is this important? – Simply, we have to be able to extrapolate from answers the most accurate overview of industry size and impact to government through, turnover, taxation and employmentIs your business VAT registered? Yes No Approximate annual turnover of business (Please DO NOT include the total approximate VAT payments made by your business for the fiscal year): £0-£49,999 £50,000 – £99,999 £100,000 – £149,999 £150,000 – £199,999 £200,000 – £249,999 £250,000 – £299,999 £300,000 – £399,999 £400,000 – £499,999 £500,000 – £599,999 £600,000 – £699,999 £700,000 – £799,999 £800,000 – £899,999 £900,000 – £999,999 £1,000,000+ Proportion of this turnover that is directly attributable to reptiles, amphibians and invertebrates or related feeds and equipment. 0-10% 11-20% 21-30% 31-40% 41-50% 51-60% 61-70% 71-80% 81-90% 91-100% Estimated total self-assessment or corporation tax payments annually. £0 – £1,999 £2,000 – £3,999 £4,000 – £5,999 £6,000 – £7,999 £8,000 – £9,999 £10,000 – £12,499 £12,500 – £14,999 £15,000 – £17,499 £17,500 – £19,999 £20,000 – £24,999 £25,000 – £29,999 £30,000 – £34,999 £35,000 – £39,999 £40,000 – £44,999 £45,000 – £49,999 £50,000 – £59,999 £60,000 – £69,999 £70,000 – £79,999 £80,000 – £89,999 £90,000 – £99,999 £100,000 + How would you characterise your business trajectory In a period of rapid growth In a period of slow growth In a period of stasis In a period of slow decline In a period of rapid decline If asked ‘will your business still be trading in five years’ time? (based on turnover and trends) what would your answer be Very confident my business is stable and will still be trading in five years Generally confident business will still be trading in five years My business will still be trading but in a smaller more streamlined form Not confident my business will still be trading in five years’ time given current trends Convinced my business will not be trading in five years’ time Employment and Workforce (Why is this important. The impact the reptile industry has on the job market is pivotally important to illustrate if it was hampered or stopped in anyway this would have direct and demonstrable impacts on employees and their contributions to the exchequer)How many employees working 0-24hrs per week does the business haveHow many employees working 25hrs+ per week does the business haveDefine how many employees have been enrolled in a pension scheme None Some Most All Do you insist employees have a level 3 qualification in animal management? Yes No Do you value hands on experience more than such a qualification? No Not Sure Yes Do you think in your experience Local Authority inspectors are generally knowledgeable enough to evaluate an employee’s experience versus a qualification No Maybe Yes How many volunteers (in education as part of a placement) does the business have during the course of a business yearDo you consider the prospect of raising the national minimum wage in April 2025 to be problematic for your business No Somewhat Yes Will the raise in the national minimum wages make you consider reducing staff hours or even redundancies? Highly likely to have to take steps to protect the business The business may have to make small changes It will not affect business at all Reptile-specific product and service offering Why is this important? Some questions centre on areas of self -regulation already undertaken by REPTA. Others help to paint a picture of the true total number of animals held in stock by the business sector. Anti-reptile lobbyists often downplay the population of reptiles in the UK to diminish our importance. We need to be able to categorically state how many are held by business and this can be combined with data generated by other survey’s such as those undertaken by the FBH. This data will help the lobby.Do you sell species considered giant? No (I have decided to no longer sell giants from the business) Some (a very specific list with reasoning as to why) Some (based on availability rather than a defined ‘no sale’ list) Yes (I sell all available species from the business) If you were to assign a percentage to shop space given over to livestock vs drygoods and foods. (Left number livestock, right number drygoods and foods) 0%:100% 10%:90% 20%:80% 30%:70% 40%:60% 50%:50% 60%:40% 70%:30% 80%:20% 90%:10% 100%: 0% When you purchase livestock for your business what proportion is shop bred or bought from private breeders versus bought from livestock wholesalers (left number shop bred or bought from public, right number from livestock wholesalers) 0%:100% 10%:90% 20%:80% 30%:70% 40%:60% 50%:50% 60%:40% 70%:30% 80%:20% 90%:10% 100%: 0% With the dry goods range carried in store can your business offer a complete solution for all livestock carried Yes The majority No With the food ranges carried by your business can you offer dietary solutions for all livestock carried Yes The majority No Rehoming and rescue efforts Why is this important? The work undertaken by reptile and reptile selling businesses by taking in homeless animals often goes unnoticed. The 2022 survey REPTA conducted during the energy crisis offered up remarkable statistics about the population of animals offered homes by reptile businesses. We simply want to assess if this pressure is continuing or has diminished in anyway. We want to be able to publicly recognise the efforts of those businesses that take in needy animals.Does your business take in homeless animals if you have room to do so Yes No How many animals have you taken in to try and rehome re-sell?Compared to previous years, has the pressure from rehoming increased or decreased Increased a lot Increased a little Pretty consistent Decreased a little Decreased a lot Do you believe that rescue/rehoming centres should be licensed under LAIA in a similar way that your business is as a pet selling business? Yes Not Sure No Compliance, licensing and regulatory issuesWhat star rating did you receive for your business when inspected for your current license? 1 2 3 4 5 Do you think the star rating is effective? Highly effective Effective Neutral Ineffective Highly ineffective What do you feel should happen regarding the star rating? Keep as it is Scrap altogether Make improvements What does your local council charge for a license renewal?What is the name of the council that provides you with your license?Does your local authority use a vet to conduct a license inspection? Yes No During your license inspections has your local authority ever added caveats or requests that you consider to be in excess of legislation? Yes Not sure No Do you consider the local authority license inspector to have a reasonable amount of knowledge regarding reptiles, amphibians and invertebrates and their related husbandry? Yes Not sure No Do you think the current LAIA regulations for pet selling businesses are fit for purpose? Perfectly fit for purpose There are problems but generally fit for purpose Neutral There are problems and not fit for purpose There are major problems and are totally not fit for purpose Do you have any suggestions on how LAIA could be improved to aid business whilst still enshrining welfare?If you had to prioritise the 3 largest challenges to your business, what would they be?
