Celebrating 30 Years with Petland: Christina Wood’s Journey

This year, Petland is proud to celebrate an incredible milestone: Petland Pickerington General Manager Christina Wood’s 30th anniversary with the company. Christina’s journey is a true testament to passion, dedication, and the love of animals that sits at the heart of Petland.

From Volunteer to General Manager

Christina first walked through Petland’s doors in the summer of 1995—not as an employee, but as a volunteer. Just a teenager at the time, she quickly fell in love with the environment and was officially hired at around age 15 at the Town n Country store in Ohio.

From those early days, Christina’s career blossomed. She has held nearly every position within Petland’s four walls: Pet Counselor, Fish Specialist, Kennel Associate, Inventory Control, Sales Manager, and now, General Manager (GM).

Her career took her across several locations and states:

• Starting in Ohio, she became a key holder at the Hamilton Road store with the Donovans.
• In Florida, she joined the Pembroke Pines store as a Lead Pet Counselor, later promoted to Sales Manager at West Palm Beach, and eventually rising to General Manager. She also worked in the Deerfield Beach store.
• When her Florida stores closed, Christina returned home to Ohio. In 2016, she joined the Pickerington store as a Sales Manager before quickly earning her promotion to GM in 2017.
• She went on to manage the Lancaster store in 2020 before returning once again to Pickerington in 2022, where she proudly serves today.

Favorite Memories

For Christina, Petland has been a place of growth and discovery. One of her favorite memories is learning about large parrots from Beth Nauer. “Learning how to hand feed, interact, and understand them was such an amazing experience,” she recalls.

Why She Loves Petland

What has kept Christina committed for three decades? She says it’s the role diversity and the joy of never having two days that are the same. Of course, there’s also the unbeatable perk of being able to love on her favorite pets whenever she needs a pick-me-up.

“I’ve been in and out of the Petland family for so long I honestly can’t see myself doing anything else,” Christina shares.

A True Petland Legacy

Christina’s 30-year journey is an inspiring story of dedication, passion, and resilience. From her start as a volunteer to leading one of Petland’s stores as GM, she embodies the spirit of Petland’s mission to connect people and pets.

We are so proud to celebrate Christina and her remarkable career. Here’s to many more years of making memories, mentoring team members, and spreading the joy of pets!