The Leap Venture Academy is excited to announce the 12 startups participating in its Cat Summit on October 29th. Taking place on National Cat Day, this event is focused on helping cat-specific startups build a community of like-minded founders and evolve their businesses.
The Leap Venture Academy’s Cat Summit is a one day program for entrepreneurs working on an early stage idea or company focused on cats and those who love them. During the Summit, founders will hear from expert speakers, meet with industry mentors, and attend fireside chats with successful founders. …
Fifteen of the most promising pet care startups collectively received $90k in funding after graduating from the Leap Venture Academy Bootcamp today. The weeklong annual Bootcamp connected founders who identify as female and/or as a person of color with the resources and mentorship needed to get their startups to the next stage in their business.
The Bootcamp represents Leap’s renewed commitment to support early stage pet care startup founders who identify as female and/or as a person of color — groups historically underrepresented in the industry and investment. …
Today, our Leap Venture Studio applications open for our 4th accelerator for pet care startups. The program will be entirely online and run from February to May 2021.
Leap’s mission is to create a smarter world for pets and their people. Our investments in startups reflect our commitment to that mission. Over the past three cohorts, we’ve supported sustainable treats for dogs, better end of life care for our pets, and platforms & services that make it easier to care for our pets with the love they deserve. …
Leap Venture Studio, the first pet care-specific startup accelerator, opened up applications today for its fourth program. Up to seven startups will be selected for the program, scheduled to take place virtually over 12 weeks from February — May 2021. Apply Here
The Studio is a joint project between Michelson Found Animals, Kinship and R/GA Ventures. In addition to investment of up to $200k, selected startups will have access to mentors and resources from the three partners and their extended networks. The startups will also work with a customized team of R/GA’s award-winning strategists, technologists, designers, and consultants to prepare them for future milestones, including fundraising, pitching, and business development. …
Leap Venture Academy is excited to announce the 15 startups participating in its second annual Bootcamp, from September 21–25. This year’s bootcamp is focused on amplifying the ideas of early stage startup CEOs and founders who identify as female and/or as a person of color.
Leap Venture Academy’s Bootcamp is a free weeklong startup program for underrepresented pet care entrepreneurs working on an early stage idea or company. Over the course of the week, founders will participate in a variety of programs including: classes, workshops, and fireside chats. …
Leap Venture Academy is pleased to announce that The Bark Shoppe is the winner of its 2020 Leap Pet Project Virtual Pitch Competition. The Bark Shoppe, a NYC based startup reimagining the pet grooming industry, beat out 5 other finalists to win the $15k grand prize.
The pitch competition took place over the last 6 weeks of this summer. More than 75 early stage pet care startups from across the world applied to take part in Leap’s summer activities, including the pitch competition. …
Leap Venture Academy is pleased to announce the 11 semi-finalists for our 2020 Leap Pet Project Pitch competition. The startups are providing services and products to problems ranging from health and nutrition to travel and grooming. Innovation in pet care continues to attract talent from around the world — three of the semi-finalists are from outside North America.
The semi-finalists will compete for $25k in prize money. The startups will also receive mentorship and critical feedback to help accelerate their ideas into a thriving business.
The top five finalists will compete during a virtual live event on August 18th at 10am PT. Register here. …
In the past month, we’ve all been tasked with taking a long, hard look at our respective companies and industries, and seeing if they are reflective of what we stand for.
It is imperative that we address the lack of diversity in the pet industry at large — in our founders, our leaders, our partnerships, our investments, and our employees.
The team at Leap is ready to translate rhetoric into action, and to help make the structural changes that need to take place in the industry.
Next week, we will be hosting our first Diversity in Pet Care Roundtable on Wednesday, July 1st, at 9am PT / 12pm ET. The call will be hosted by Carla Isabel Carstens, Director of Communications & Events at Kinship, Renaldo Webb, Founder of Pet Plate, & Zubin Bhettay, Co-Founder & CEO of Fuzzy Pet Health. …
Each week during the course of the Leap Venture Studio, our 3-month accelerator for pet care startups, we will feature one of the seven companies in our cohort.
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Cory Turner grew up in a house full of dogs thanks to her mom, Jane. Today, Cory and Jane have transformed their love of dogs into Dogly — a marketplace that brings together recommended products, trainers, nutritionists, holistic vets, and wellness experts to help dog parents get answers and worry less.
Dogly was founded in 2015 by this mother-daughter duo after Cory experienced the daily stress of caring for a dog on your own for the first time. Through the Dogly website and social media platforms, dog parents can learn from certified dog care experts (called Advocates) and shop for highly curated, vetted products. …
Each week during the course of the Leap Venture Studio, our 3-month accelerator for pet care startups, we will feature one of the seven companies in our cohort.
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Modern day pet parents are focused on the health and wellness of their pets more than ever before, while also having different needs and expectations for care. Primed to capitalize on this trend is Dogdrop, a new kind of dog care based in Downtown Los Angeles.
Like many pet parents, CEO and co-founder of Dogdrop, Shaina Denny, was frustrated with her search for dog daycare for her dog Poppy. Hours were inflexible, rates were high, and the locations were not accessible. …
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