Dog-sitting startup GoFetch ready to collar online market
Fresh off a seven-figure round of investor fundraising, a Vancouver tech startup hopes to unleash the business potential of furry friends.
Local company GoFetch.ca’s stated aim is to “make dog ownership simple,” using technology to connect dog owners with registered service providers who can walk their pooches and provide overnight care.
Earlier this week, GoFetch closed a $1.4 million seed-funding round, raising money from a mix of institutional venture capitalists and high net-worth individuals, all based in B.C., the company confirmed Friday.
“It’s a very B.C.-bred story,” said Willson Cross, the company’s 24-year-old co-founder. “This injection of capital really validates the real-world problem GoFetch is solving for Canadian pet owners, in addition to the healthy growth of the pet category.”
GoFetch’s users currently include thousands of dog owners and thousands of service providers across Canada, with Vancouver and Toronto the “hottest markets,” Cross said. Plans are afoot to eventually expand into foreign markets like the U.S., U.K. and Australia.
In the last six months, GoFetch has grown from six full-time employees to 15, and expanded from a spot in a co-working space in Vancouver’s Chinatown to its own office in the downtown financial district.
It’s a pet-friendly workplace, Cross said, adding the company’s co-founder Paul Ratchford often brings his Australian shepherd to work.
“We have dogs in the office every day, all day,” Cross said.
More than once in GoFetch’s first year of operation, the startup was described in media reports as “the Uber of dog walking.” Cross said he understands the comparison, but doesn’t necessarily embrace it.
“You could call us Airbnb for this, or Uber for that,” he said. “But our mission is to build the largest, most trusted and most vibrant pet-related marketplace in the world.”
Pet care is a large and growing industry, accounting for more than US$66 billion in spending last year, according to market research from the American Pet Products Association.
And, just like most other industries, online commerce is an increasingly important part of the pet business. Just this week, industry giant Petsmart agreed to acquire fast-growing pet product site Chewy.com for US$3.35 billion, tech news source Recode reported, calling it “the largest ecommerce acquisition ever.”
The value of the deal, Recode reported, was larger than Walmart’s $3.3 billion deal for Jet.com last year.
Cross loves animals, but does not have a pet of his own. He’s registered as a GoFetch service provider, although he hasn’t had much extra time lately for dog-sitting and walking.
“As you can imagine, it’s been a busy time,” said the young entrepreneur.