Pet services startup MadPaws raises $1.1 million in oversubscribed round

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Sydney-based startup Mad Paws started as a bright idea after founder Alexis Soulopoulos ‘pet sitted’ for a close friend who was struggling to find a place for his labrador, Honey, to stay while he was travelling overseas. It was founded to fill in the ballooning need in the pet boarding market for more affordable local pet accommodation whilst still maintaining the extra attention pets receive at high-end pet boarding services.

The startup aims to create a safe, affordable and efficient way to find local pet sitters in the neighbourhoods that will ensure pet owners the peace of mind that their pets are in good hands. It strives to help pet owners to find passionate and trusted local pet sitters when they have to go away.

Through the platform, owners search through sitters’ profile and pick a sitter based on their qualifications and characteristics. The owner then proceeds to communicate care terms and rates with the pet sitter and rate their experience afterwards. Integrity is ensured where sitters go through a verification process to register, and each pet sit is covered by a free public liability insurance policy.

Mad Paws considers itself as the ‘Airbnb for pets’ with over 3,500 verified pet sitters across Australia and over 50 percent month-on-month growth, making it the largest marketplace of its kind within the Australian market..

The startup was started by Alexis Soulopoulos who then together with successful entrepreneurs and business leaders Rolf Weber (founder BrandsExclusive), Jan Pacas (CEO Hilti Australia), Bjorn Behrendt (Co-founder ParcelPush) and Justus Hammer (Co-founder Spreets). The service was officially launched in November 2014.

The startup launched a mobile app in June in response to users’ need for more convenient ways of communicating with sitters about their pets while away from town. The app is available on both Google Play and App store.

The Sydney-based startup has this morning managed to raise $1.1 million in an oversubscribed funding round that involved investors like Macdoch Ventures, Commonwealth Bank Group Executive Matt Comyn, cofounder of HotelsCombined Michael Doubinski and Managing Director of Amazon Web Services Paul Migliorini. The new funds will be used to drive its marketing and growth strategies.

[Source] Pet services startup MadPaws raises $1.1 million in oversubscribed round