Home Today Is It’s 2018 And People Are Still Buying Pet Rocks (2 Videos)

It’s 2018 And People Are Still Buying Pet Rocks (2 Videos)

Sep 1, 2018

Thank goodness for Pet Rock Day, offering the perfect opportunity to pamper and spoil the special stone in your life.

Launched in the 1970s by advertising executive Gary Dahl, the pet rock was an antithesis to those living pets in need of regular care. It did, however, come with a mean “attack” mode. For a mere $3.95 people could adopt their very own rock, supplied on a bed of hay in an well-ventilated box. Like all things, pet rocks are more expensive these days, but you could always catch a wild one for free – just remember that undomesticated rocks may be more difficult to handle. [Watch this 1975 Story by KNBC News)

One thing that is not surprising is the fact that it is 2018, even as time flies. What is surprising though is the fact that even at that, people still buy pet rocks. Unlike Barbie, these rocks are not sold as playthings for children, but rather as things to be owned by adults.
According to its manufacturers, pet rocks are the only pets that you can own without worrying about feeding, bathing, walking, or even training it. That is because it is a stone!
The creators of this rock actually came up with the idea of developing it so that people who buy it will always get the question, “What is it used for?” And then you will have fun telling them to guess. Now, this may not be it, but that is all I can think of. According to those who have designed it, however, it is supposed to serve as a devoted friend and companion for as long as you can live. Now this is only natural because a rock is supposed to live longer than you.
Someone somewhere has taken the time out to write down a 32 paged booklet that will help you get the best out of your pet rock. What the manual is all about, is how to help you turn the rock into a friend and companion that is faithful, devoted, and obedient. By the way, the booklet treats your rock like a real pet and gives you hints on how to get it to sit, lie, or evenroll over.
The Pet Rock craze lasted about six months, beginning in September of 1975, with sales peaking during the Christmas season and tanking in February of 1976 when stores discounted prices due to declining sales and copycat products flooding the market.
While it isn’t public knowledge what Dahl’s profit margin was for each Pet Rock after costs such as labor, shipping, and giving his investors and retailer’s their cuts was accounted for, he did once state that his initial target was to make sure he’d make a minimum of $1 ($4.45 today) for each rock sold. In 2004, he also told the New York Times that “I put about $5 million of today’s money in my pocket” thanks to the Pet Rock. Once the dust settled and the fad was over, he sold approximately 1.5 million rocks for a gross sales total of about $6 million or about $27 million today. Doing the math, about $5 million in 2004 would mean he profited about $1.5 million in 1975 (about $6.7 million today); so if his 2004 quote is to be believed, he hit his target of about $1 profit per Pet Rock sold and did indeed “make a million dollars” from selling rocks.
If the idea of coming up with the pet rock is not surprising enough, the idea that someone else somewhere has taken the time out to write and compose a love song for the pet rock should be. The country singer, Bill Pineo or Al Bolt sang the song about his son’s relationship with his pet rock. (YouTube.com/wilburscott)