While 2020 has certainly had its share of ups and downs, we wanted to take a moment to focus on something positive: this September, we are celebrating our 37th anniversary! We are grateful for all of the people who have helped this store grow and become a place where we can all share our love of birds. Here, we take some time to reflect on how we got to where we are today.
Todd’s Story
Our story begins with the man for whom the store is named: Todd Marcus himself. Ever since he was a young boy, Todd loved animals. He would often visit a pet farm in Miami which imported animals, including exotic birds. Todd took a special interest in the birds and would spend time taming them.
As an adult, he found himself working for a company that sold birds wholesale to various stores. Since he had the opportunity to see how everything worked, he decided to start his own business. The key difference is that, unlike most stores at the time, Todd decided to sell domestic birds — ones who had been raised from eggs by people and not taken from their natural habitats.
The store opened in 1983, in a tiny room inside a fish factory. Just a few years later, he moved the business to a small store in a new location, but thanks to the rapidly growing popularity of the store — which stemmed from Todd’s friendly and straightforward demeanor and specialist knowledge — he soon needed a larger space. This success led to him moving to a location in the Mainline Shopping Center, which served him well until 2006, when he expanded into our current 10,000 square foot home in Delran. Every year we continue to grow; In fact, we hope to be moving to an even larger location very soon, with additional improvements!
In 2015, Todd “retired” and moved to Alaska with his wife (and, of course, their feathered and furry friends). Today, his son Zac is in charge of the store, and he and all of the staff continue the family tradition of providing friendly and helpful service and always prioritizing the health and happiness of their birds.
Innovation Fueled by a Love of Birds
If you’re new to aviculture, you may not realize just how much has changed in the past 30-40 years. It wasn’t until 1992 that the importation of exotic birds became illegal under the Wild Bird Conservation Act. Any reputable pet store today should only sell birds that were raised in captivity in the US.
We take the health of our birds very seriously. If you’ve visited our store, you’ve seen our birds displayed in large, isolated enclosures with glass in the front. Did you know that each of these enclosures has its own air system? It not only purifies the air, but keeps the birds quarantined from both visitors and each other to keep them healthy!
Besides designing these unique enclosures, Todd also looked for ways to make the lives of the people who live with birds a little easier. With birds being the messy eaters that they are, he created a plexiglass seed catcher that attaches to the bird’s cage. While this feature is common on many quality cages now, at the time, this product didn’t really exist.
Birds of a Feather
We are so grateful for all of our customers over the years who share our passion for these beautiful, complex creatures with whom we share our lives. To thank you for your support, we will be holding our annual anniversary sale with savings in-store and online! You can save on bird food, bird cages, and more. As always, feel free to reach out to our friendly staff with any questions you may have.
