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Chewy (company)

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This article is about the pet food retailer. For other uses, see Chewy (disambiguation).
Chewy
Company typeSubsidiary
IndustryRetail
GenrePet supplies
Founded2011
FoundersRyan Cohen (Former CEO)
Michael Day (Former CTO)
Headquarters
Dania Beach, Florida
,
U.S.
Area served
United States
Key people
Sumit Singh (CEO)
Jim Grube (CFO)
Stuart Horowitz (CPO)
ProductsPet food and products
Number of employees
7,000 (2018)[1]
ParentPetSmart
WebsiteOfficial website

Chewy (sometimes referred to as Chewy.com) is an online retailer of pet food and other pet-related products owned by PetSmart and is based in Dania Beach, Florida. The company offers around 30,000 items for dogs and cats. In addition to its headquarters in Florida, Chewy also maintains fulfillment centers in Texas, Nevada, Pennsylvania, Florida and Indiana.[2][3][4] It was founded in 2011[5][6] and has received $236 million in venture capital financing over 5 rounds[7] from Volition Capital,[8] Mark Vadon, T. Rowe Price, New Horizons Fund, BlackRock, Allen & Co, Verlinvest and Greenspring Associates.[7][9]

History

Chewy was founded as Mr. Chewy[5][6] in September 2011 by Ryan Cohen (former CEO) and Michael Day (former CTO).[2][3][10] In March 2012, the company estimated a total yearly revenue of $26 million, despite losing money in its first half year.[3][5][11] Between 2012 and 2014, traffic to the website increased by 500%.[12] Because most orders originated on the east coast of the United States, the company's warehouse was located in Pennsylvania.[3] In August 2013, Chewy's headquarters moved to Dania Beach, Florida.[2][13] In 2014, Chewy received an undisclosed amount of funding from Boston-based growth equity firm, Volition Capital.[6][14] In July 2014, Chewy purchased a former Toys "R" Us warehouse and distribution center near Sparks, Nevada.[4] The company hired former employees and executives from Amazon, PetSmart, Whole Foods Market, and Wayfair.[2] On February 1, 2017, the company announced an expanded, five-year $90M secured senior credit facility from Wells Fargo Capital Finance.[15] In November 2017, Chewy's customer service department moved to Hollywood, Florida.[1] By 2017, the company had revenue of approximately $2 billion and 51% of online pet food and litter sales in the US.[1][11][16]

Chewy was acquired by PetSmart in April 2017 for $3.35 billion, which is the largest ever acquisition of an e-commerce business.[17][18] On May 31, 2017, PetSmart announced that it had completed the acquisition of Chewy.[19] Allen & Company served as advisors for the deal.[20] Upon closing, Chewy would continue to be led by CEO Ryan Cohen and operate largely as an independent subsidiary of PetSmart, focusing on its current business strategy, while PetSmart would execute its strategic initiatives across the combined company.[21][22] On March 15, 2018, Cohen stepped down as Chewy's CEO, and Sumit Singh was named the company's new CEO.[23]

Products and operation

Chewy offers over 30,000 pet products, largely for dogs and cats.[2][24] Its primary product is pet food, and it offers a range of options from gourmet to discount food.[2][25] Other products include leashes, grooming tools, toys and strollers.[2] Delivery for purchases over $49 is free. Customers can also opt for scheduled food deliveries.[25][26] Orders can be placed online or by phone.[2] At one time, a portion of all purchases was donated to no-kill animal shelters.[3][25]

The company also employs artists and writers who are given the task of composing hand-written postcards for all new purchases. Artists also paint detailed images of customers' pets at random. Customers who submit photographs of their pets to customer service, or through Facebook or other social media, have a chance for their pet to receive a special gift. [2][27][28]

References

  1. ^ a b c Marcia Heroux, "Why has Chewy.com succeeded? Co-founder points to its customer service and changing times," Sun-Sentinel, January 29, 2018.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i Valverde, Miriam (6 November 2015). "Pet retailer Chewy.com is part of a growing breed". Sun-Sentinel. Retrieved 2 August 2016.
  3. ^ a b c d e Miller, Susan R. (30 March 2012). "Pet product online retailer sees growth in a bullish market". South Florida Business Journal. Retrieved 2 August 2016.
  4. ^ a b O'Driscoll, Bill (2 July 2014). "Pet food e-tailer to fill vacant Toys R Us site". Reno Gazette-Journal. Retrieved 2 August 2016.
  5. ^ a b c Woo, Stu (6 March 2012). "Pets.com 2.0". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 2 August 2016.
  6. ^ a b c C., Piers (15 January 2015). "Emerging startup: Chewy.com". Varyonic. Retrieved 2 August 2016.
  7. ^ a b "Pet food retailer Chewy.com has seen fantastic growth. But can it keep up the pace? | Miami Herald". www.miamiherald.com. Retrieved 2017-04-19.
  8. ^ Loizos, Connie (26 July 2016). "Volition Capital has rounded up $250 million for its third fund". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2 August 2016.
  9. ^ "Chewy Funding & Chewy Investors - CB Insights". Retrieved 2017-04-19.
  10. ^ "Company Overview of Chewy, Inc". Bloomberg. Retrieved 2 August 2016.
  11. ^ a b Susan Adams, "The Man Who Found Gold in Dog Food," Forbes, January 24, 2017.
  12. ^ Gazdik, Tanya (19 October 2014). "Online Retailers Positioned To Take Bite Out Of Pet Sales". MediaPost Communications. Retrieved 2 August 2016.
  13. ^ Krischer Goodman, Cindy (23 August 2015). "A new design for South Florida DCOTA". Miami Herald. Retrieved 2 August 2016.
  14. ^ Collins, Allison (14 January 2015). "Volition Invests $15M in B2B Commerce Software". Mergers & Acquisitions. Retrieved 2 August 2016. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  15. ^ "Wells Fargo Capital Finance Completes Expanded Financing for Leading Pet Retailer Chewy | Wells Fargo Capital Finance". Wells Fargo Capital Finance. 2017-02-01. Retrieved 2017-04-19.
  16. ^ Nancy Dahlberg, "PetSmart is buying Chewy.com in possibly the biggest e-commerce acquisition ever," Los Angeles Times, April 19, 2017.
  17. ^ Emily Canal, "Meet the Young Founders of Chewy.com, Which PetSmart Just Bought for $3.35 Billion," Inc., April 19, 2017.
  18. ^ Jason Del Ray, "Ryan Cohen kept Chewy under the radar until it sold for more than $3 billion," Recode, December 6, 2017.
  19. ^ "PetSmart Completes Acquisition of Chewy". www.businesswire.com. Retrieved 2017-06-01.
  20. ^ Jessica Dye, "PetSmart makes online push with Chewy.com deal," Financial Times, April 18, 2017.
  21. ^ PetSmart. "PetSmart® NewsRoom News Release". phx.corporate-ir.net. Retrieved 2017-04-18.
  22. ^ Adams, Susan. "Fast-Growing Pet-Product Upstart Chewy Is Selling Out To PetSmart For A Reported $3.35 Billion". Forbes. Retrieved 2017-04-18.
  23. ^ Stephanie Crets, "Roundup: Chewy CEO steps down and other personnel news," Internet Retailer, March 16, 2018.
  24. ^ Muldowney, Susan (1 April 2016). "The $8 billion business battle over your pets". In The Black. Retrieved 2 August 2016.
  25. ^ a b c Barrett, Lori (2 February 2012). "A Dog's New Best Friend: The Delivery Man". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 2 August 2016.
  26. ^ Halkias, Maria (27 June 2016). "Pet supply stores finding good homes in North Texas shopping centers". The Dallas Morning News. Retrieved 2 August 2016.
  27. ^ Roman, Ernan (21 April 2016). "Post-purchase Engagement is Essential… and Overlooked". Customer Think. Retrieved 2 August 2016. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  28. ^ Jones, Chuck (2 December 2015). "Sealing the Business". Chuck Jones Direct. Retrieved 2 August 2016.
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