The future is more digital than ever

“We have come together to develop solutions jointly for the pet sector,” declared host Kim Bill, head of the Purina Accelerator Lab at Nestlé Purina, when welcoming 85 start-ups from across the globe along with 35 internationally active investors. At the invitation of Nestlé Purina, they all congregated on the campus of Tractive, a leading European supplier of GPS trackers for dogs and cats, in Pasching near Linz in Austria to attend the Unleashed event. The start-ups came to network, to share their experience and of course in the hope of attracting an investor. Alongside a number of presentations covering all aspects of the start-up business, 18 start-ups selected in advance were able to introduce themselves in three-minute pitches.

This was the fourth edition of the Unleashed initiative, the first European support programme for start-ups relating to pets. Nestlé Purina aims by this to support innovative start-ups in particular and partner them with investors.

The event offered plenty of opportunities for the entrepreneurs to share experience  and to make contact with potential investors. In the first panel discussion, Hubert Wieser, director of Nestlé Purina Central Region, talked to his guests about investor prospects on the start-up scene in the pet sector and about current opportunities and challenges for company founders against the backdrop of the present economic uncertainties. The importance of success in the market in Germany was highlighted here, which was definitive for the international success of a start-up. Only the USA was a more dynamic market for start-ups, with a much larger investor offering. Two investors with around 5 million euros were regarded by the discussion participants as ideal for a start-up.

Interesting panel discussions ensued regarding prospects in the pet sector. Veeraje Bhonsle of JamJar Investments spoke to his guests about the future prospects of direct sales models (D2C), while Michael Hurnaus, founder and CEO of Tractive, rounded off the day with the third panel exchanging experiences on the topic of “Growth of scale-ups”. His conclusion was that “the mantra of only driving growth and not looking for the moment at earnings applied to start-ups for years. This is now no longer the case.”

The 18 start-ups selected in advance by a jury then took the stage. They presented their business models in the context of three-minute pitches in the categories of “Digi-Tech”, “Health-Tech” and “Food-Tech” to a jury of investors. The winner in each category received a cheque for 5 000 euros, while the runner-up received an award of 3 000 euros from Nestlé Purina.

The outcome was that the future is evidently more digital than ever. Countless apps relating to pet care and support, the majority with a veterinary background, were unveiled both during the pitches and in the large number of discussions. At the end of the day, the winners were Paaw (www.paaw.co) from France in the “Digi-Tech” category, Pezz Life (www.pezz.life) of Austria in the category of “Health-Tech” and Pharmapets (www.pharmapets.be) of Belgium in the “Food-Tech” category.

Hubert Wieser, Kim Bill and Michael Hurnaus (Tractive) reflected with satisfaction on the big day. For Hubert Wieser, the start-up event was a complete success: “Our aim with Unleashed is to develop the leading network for start-ups in the pet sector in Europe. With the event in Linz, we have taken a major step closer to this aim. We have seen exciting business models and made and brokered a lot of new contacts. The fundamental megatrend of technical progress and digitalisation will continue and I am extremely confident that the pet sector will continue to be one of the most exciting sectors.”