Benchmark invests in and works alongside entrepreneurs building startups into transformational companies. They focus on early-stage venture investing in mobile, marketplaces, social, and infrastructure and enterprise software. Founded in 1995, the firm has offices in Woodside and San Francisco, California. The firm has been recognized for its commitment to open source and is noted for creating the first equal ownership and compensation structure for its partners. The five equal general partners who take board seats and a hands-on approach to every entrepreneur and company they back, with no junior investment staff. Current general partners are Chetan Puttagunta, Sarah Tavel, Victor Lazarte, Peter Fenton, and Eric Vishria. Benchmark has had 37 exits since beginning of 2011; 14 IPOs and 23 M&As representing a total market value of more than $60 billion. Benchmark’s current portfolio of early-stage venture investments includes private market leaders such as Uber, Snapchat, Tinder, Stitch Fix, Elastic and Cyanogen; recent IPOs and acquisitions such as Twitter, Instagram, Yelp, League of Legends, Jasper, OpenTable, New Relic, Hortonworks, Amplitude, Confluent, GrubHub, Zendesk and Zillow; and franchise companies from Juniper to eBay to Red Hat.

Benchmark

Swifto

Swifto uses technology to scale up dog walking. Swifto connects between highly vetted, insured, background checked, college educated dog walkers with dog owners through automated text messages going out to qualified dog walkers, automatic matching between both parties, online payments, and then GPS tracked dog walking to give clients the peace of mind that there dog is being walked for the right amount of time and at the right time.  Swifto also sends an automatic text message to the dog owner at the beginning and end of the walk, as well as a photo of the dog along the way.  Swifto's app takes every single thing one can imagine into consideration when it comes to dog walking, starting with whether or not the dog needs to be fed, and ending with specific allergies or fears the dog walker must be aware of. Swifto currently provides service in NYC and Brickell, Miami

<div><p>Swifto is an online dog walking platform that uses GPS tracking to map the walk. The dog owner can create an account through the website and choose a walk schedule. Swifto will link the dog owner with one of its dog walkers who is trained and insured. The owner receives a text message when the walk starts and gets frequent updates through the Swifto app. As of April 2024, Swifto had completed more than 400,000 dog walks.</p></div>

Pet ownership is at an all time high in the United States and the pet care economy is booming.

Pet Care Tech

Swifto Expands into North Carolina with Acquisition of Wagz 'n Whiskerz

<div>
  <p>
    Swifto is an online dog walking platform that uses GPS tracking to map the walk. The dog owner can create an account through the website and choose a walk schedule. Swifto will link the dog owner with one of its dog walkers who is trained and insured. The owner receives a text message when the walk starts and gets frequent updates through the Swifto app. As of April 2024, Swifto had completed more than 400,000 dog walks. 
  </p>
  <p>
    In April 2024, the company 
    expanded its presence in North Carolina by acquiring 
    <a href="https://sp-edge.com/updates/28924">
      Wagz 'n Whiskerz,
    </a>
     an in-home pet care company.
  </p>
</div>


<div>
  <p>
    Digitail offers a cloud-based software platform for veterinarians that provides an online booking system, electronic record keeping, stock management, invoicing, billing, etc. The platform, which can be accessed from any device (mobile phones, laptops, desktops), is available in different packages on a Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) basis; USD 95 per month for mobile vets, USD 79 per month for small clinics, and USD 159 per month for large clinics. As of March 2021, the platform served 2,000 veterinarians across 16 countries.
  </p>
  <p>
    <b>Funding and financials</b>
  </p>
  <p>
    In January 2023, the company raised 
    <a href="https://sp-edge.com/updates/16032?industryIds=7">
      USD 11 million in Series A funding
    </a>
     led by Atomico to expand its operations in the US and Canada. The round follows its USD 2.5 
    million seed funding in March 2021, led by the VC firm byFounders and Gradient Ventures (Google&rsquo;s AI fund).
  </p>
</div>


Digitail

<p><span>Gudog is a Spanish on-demand platform that connects dog owners with dog sitters for at-home dog sitting, dog walking, and dog daycare services. The company operates in France, UK, Germany, Ireland and Spain. In February 2019, the company merged with HouseMyDog, a similar company headquartered in the UK, to mutually expand its reach to more than 25,000 dog sitters on its platforms. As of February 2019, Gudog was considered to be the market leader in Spain. In February 2021, the company announced the acquisition of Host My Pet, a Finnish online pet sitting services company, for an undisclosed amount. The acquisition is aimed at expanding operations into Nordic countries, starting with Finland. With the acquisition, the combined entity’s 17 full-time employees will serve approximately 650,000 pet owners across Europe.</span></p>

GuDog

<p><span>Urban Leash is an on-demand pet care service provider that offers dog walking and cat sitting services. The app is GPS-embedded, which allows pet owners to track the whereabouts of pets. Its dog walking services and cat services are are offered in Boston within the Fenway and Jamaica Plain neighborhoods, whereas cat sitting services are also provided in several other areas in Brookline. Urban Leash also provides care services for small animals, such as feeding fish, small birds, and small mammals. Administering medication is offered without any fees.</span></p>

Urban Leash

<p><span>TeleTails is a veterinary telehealth platform that allows pet owners to obtain advice from veterinarians and behaviorists when needed. The company’s software provides care teams with the ability to offer live video consultations, flexible messaging, and cross-team communication. In May 2020, the company launched TeleTails Instant in response to the Covid-19 pandemic to make veterinary services available at no cost during the crisis.</span></p>

TeleTails

<p><span>Based in the UK, PawSquad provides on-demand veterinary telehealth services through video consultations and online chats. Pet owners can instantly access veterinary practitioners without pre-scheduling. The company also offers home visits on request. Advice from general practitioners is priced at around USD 26 per visit, while specialist consultations are priced at around USD 62 per visit. PawSquad provides specialist services in dermatology and plans to introduce other areas, such as endocrinology, behavior, gastroenterology, and oncology in the future. As of February 2021, the company operated more than 1,500 clinics across 12 countries in Europe and had an employee base of more than 22,000, including 6,0000 veterinary professionals.</span></p><p><span>In March 2021, was acquired by UK-based veterinary service provider IVC Evidensia, that operates across Europe, for an undisclosed amount. IVC Evidensia operated more than 1,500 clinics across 12 countries in Europe as of February 2021. The company also has an employee base of more than 22,000, including 6,0000 veterinary professionals.The acquisition will allow PawSquad to expand geographically while also providing pet owners accessibility to IVC Evidendsia’s veterinary professionals through PawSquad’s telehealth platform.</span></p><p><br></p>

PawSquad

Companies that provide digital veterinary platforms to connect pet owners directly with online veterinary services.

Companies that provide mobile-based platforms to match pet owners with providers of pet services such as pet boarding, pet sitting, and dog walking.

Startups that offer innovative insurance solutions via digital platforms specialized for pet insurance coverage.

Companies that develop and offer technological solutions, such as self-cleaning tech, smart feeding devices, and interactive toys, to enhance and monitor pets' health and well-being.

Uses IoT technology to remotely monitor and interact with pets

AI and ML technologies enable pet owners to monitor and improve pet care

Offers digital platforms, such as veterinary telehealth services, to support the wellness of pets

<div>
 <p>Swifto, a pet care company, has extended its operations in North Carolina through the acquisition of Wagz 'n Whiskerz, another company within the same industry. This strategic move is part of Swifto's plan to enhance its market position in pet care while simultaneously prioritizing top-tier care and convenience for pet owners in the area.</p>
 
</div>

Swifto

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