November 11, 2022

Whisker Media, Supertails, MySimplePetLab

🐶 Industry News

– Recently spoke with Mary Tan, CEO of Whisker Media, a boutique public relations firm that focuses on the pet industry. Mary spent 13 years as a reporter and TV anchor, but shortly after volunteering to help a Minnesota cat rescue, she decided to open up her own agency in 2013.

Mary focuses on securing earned media for her customers: coverage of their brand that is not paid for. It’s a very effective form of content marketing, but is also the toughest media type to land. She has gotten clients written up in the Washington Post and People magazine, and also mentioned on the Today and the Drew Barrymore TV shows.

Mary also represents pet influencers, including Nathan the Cat Lady (374,000 Instagram followers) and Sterling Davis (82,000 Instagram followers.)  Mary said that success in PR comes down to having an interesting story that can resonate emotionally with the public.

– The Leap Venture Studio has opened applications for its latest cohort of pet care companies. Six to eight companies will be accepted into a 12 week program, which features mentorship, a $200,000 investment and delicious snacks. Apply here.

– Morgan Stanley surveyed 2,500 US pet owners and is predicting the following:

• 8% annual growth for the pet industry by 2030, with spending reaching $277 billion
• pet services will be the fastest growing segment of the industry
• that consumers will be less willing to cut pet spending even when their personal income declines

💰 Financing & Deals

• Supertails, a Bangalore-based company that operates both a pet supply website and a veterinary telehealth service, raised a $10 million Series A round. India has one of the fastest growing pet industries in the world, with dog and cat adoption rates increasing more than 40% in the past year.

• MySimplePetLab, a Colorado startup that provides at-home pet health tests, landed a $5 million Series A round led by the Mars Companion Fund. The company was founded in 2019 by a couple of veterinarians.

• Trupanion, the second largest US pet insurer, continued its expansion into Europe by acquiring PetExpert, a pet insurance provider with customers in the Czech Republic and Slovakia. In September, Trupanion acquired Smart Paws, a German pet insurance company.

🤷 Somewhat Relevant

• Profile of a dog influencer with 270,000 Instagram followers that earns $3,000 to $20,000 per campaign.

• Freshpet investors are upset as top execs quietly work for a rival pet-food seller.

💼️ Pet Industry Jobs

• Creative Director, Consumables – BARK (NYC)

• Senior Consumer Insights Manager – Chewy (Boston)