News

1999, Nr. 3, S. 66      News Futterhaus pushes forward in Berlin    The Futterhaus franchise group has quite some plans for Berlin. Franchisee Harald Mecke, who already has four stores in the German federal capital, intends to open 13 new Futterhaus outlets in the next three years. The smallest of these will cover a retail area of 1 200 m2 and the biggest is to be built in the Schmargendorf district on an area of 3 000 m2.       The Futterhaus Group is setting a course for expansion in the German federal capital.           ZZF against ferret advertisements    In a press statement the ZZF (Zentralverband Zoologischer Fachbetriebe, the union of German pet retailers) has condemned advertising for ferrets and displaying them in pet shops. Although ZZF members are permitted to trade in ferrets, they must make sure before any purchase that the future owner will fulfil the special requirements necessary for keeping ferrets.           Söll moves house    Söll will in future manage the company's entire commercial business from its base in Duisburg. The new address is as follows: Theodor-Heuss-Straße 53, 47167 Duisburg, Germany. Production will remain at the present location in Hof.           New "Herkules" store    Rheika-Delta, the operator of DIY and garden stores, is planning to open a new "Herkules" store in a shopping centre at Lauterbach. This new branch will cover a total of approx. 4 600 m2 and include a pet department of 400 m2. The existing "Herkules" store in Lauterbach will be put to some other use by Rheika-Delta.           More VDH information on the Internet    Since the start of this year the homepage of the Dortmund-based VDH (Verband für das Deutsche Hundewesen or German Canine Association) appearing under www.vdh.de has been given a new look. The focal point of the information provided by VDH on the Internet is a database complete with search keys. This allows the user to find the addresses of breeders of all breeds of dog affiliated to the VDH. The VDH homepage has been in existence for a year already. Also retrievable in addition to breeders' addresses are dates for dog shows, all kinds of data and facts concerning dogs and current information on subjects such as dog licence fees, dog driving licences and so forth.