ALLVP and Mountain Nazca exited Petsy, a petcare ecommerce platform, through a merger with Mexican pet retailer Maskota.
(Press Release) Petsy and Maskota closed a partnership agreement to create the largest ecommerce PetCare player in Latin America and to position the Mexican retailer for the future of commerce.
In summer 2013, Pablo Pedrejón, Olivier Scialom and Toby Clarence-Smith launched petsy.com, just a few days after Pablo and Toby completed their MBA at Wharton, to disrupt the PetCare retail in Mexico. After scaling to lead the ecommerce sector, the team successfully launched a physical store at the heart of Polanco, Mexico City’s trendiest neighborhood. ‘The future of retail is omnichannel’, Olivier mentioned at the store opening.
With over 35 million pet owners in Mexico, the PetCare industry offers a multibillion dollar opportunity with one of the fastest growing online categories. In the past few years, the retail landscape changed with Petco’s entrance in 2014 and its aggressive expansion. Petsy’s launch into retail in 2016 raised the stakes. In 2017, Petsmart acquired Chewy for $8.7 B USD confirming the importance for retailers all over the world to win the online battle. The current transaction confirms the enormous potential of ecommerce in Mexico and how entrepreneurs can disrupt a market with great execution. Both companies will stay independent and still be able to leverage each other’s strategic strengths: Petsy’s know-how will accelerate Maskota’s transition to an omnichannel strategy. Maskota will deliver top customer service to all Mexican pets, being able to communicate by phone, app, website or through visits to the physical store.
Pablo Pedrejón explained when ALLVP partnered: “When we pitched Petsy to ALLVP, we had only a few happy clients but many ambitious plans. They were the first to bet on the future of this huge underserved market and were quickly joined by other top VC investors. Having a diverse pool of investors working as a team to support Petsy made all the difference. We look forward to continuing our mission to scale with Maskota, the ideal partner.”
Fernando Lelo de Larrea, commented on this strategic exit: “Petsy’s sale is not only a validation of ALLVP’s strategy but a clear example of what is possible in Mexico when capital meets talent. We were fortunate to join Pablo, Olivier and Toby since the start, through the investment rounds, from a pure digital play to an omnichannel strategy to the exit. We are excited about the future of Petsy.”