Flourishing entrepreneurship in the pet industry: Exploration of Woofz, the dog training app generating $20M ARR purely through self-funding
In an era where venture capital (VC) funding often dominates the startup landscape, one app has bucked the trend and scaled to significant success without external investment. Woofz, a leading dog training app, has grown from $5.2 million to an impressive $20 million in revenue in just one year, reaching profitability, all while remaining bootstrapped.
Natalia Shahmetova, CEO of nove8, the company behind Woofz, started her journey at Gismart, a British-Belarusian mobile app company, six years ago. Her tenure at Gismart led her to the monetisation flow, and when Gismart began work on a dog-focused app in 2020, it resonated deeply with Shahmetova, who has a lifelong love for dogs.
Woofz, launched by nove8, offers a comprehensive suite of features designed to help dog owners train their pets effectively. The app provides step-by-step lessons, daily goals, behavioural insights, personalised daily lessons, behaviour correction tools, positive reinforcement techniques, interactive features like a clicker, whistle, walk tracker, and a progress gallery.
With a team of 70 staff members and available in 10 languages, Woofz has gained a strong foothold in the global market. Approximately 70% of its user base is based in the United States, with traction also in Latin America, the UK, Europe, and China. The app has over 21 million downloads and is the number one app in its space.
One of Woofz's unique selling points is its focus on understanding and catering to the needs of its users. Instead of chasing rapid, investor-driven expansion, Woofz has invested in personalised, user-focused features like AI-driven training flows, based on detailed onboarding quizzes. This approach has allowed Woofz to stand out in the crowded app market by providing dog owners with exactly what they need.
Nove8 is not resting on its laurels, however. The company is exploring different verticals and figuring out more dog owner challenges that need solutions. The ultimate goal is to evolve Woofz into a "super app for dog owners" that includes health, wellness, and potentially food and grooming services.
Woofz is also collaborating with US organisations that help people get emotional support animal (ESA) certifications, further solidifying its position as a go-to resource for dog owners.
While there are a few major competitors to Woofz, nove8 believes it is ahead in the dog training app market due to its early investment in the niche. This strategy, along with a clear understanding of the user, actionable solutions, and belief in a niche before the rest of the market, has proven to be a successful formula for nove8 and Woofz.
In summary, the bootstrapping of Woofz has allowed for tailored development and sustainable international growth with a loyal user base. While VC funding might have enabled faster scaling, it often comes with increased external pressures and less control. The success of Woofz serves as a testament to the fact that bootstrapping can still lead to significant success in the app startup world.
- Despite the common trend of venture capital funding in the startup world, Natalia Shahmetova, CEO of nove8, chose to bootstrap Woofz, her leading dog training app, which scaled to impressive revenue and profitability within a year, demonstrating that financial independence can lead to significant success in the app business landscape.
- As weitere vestungen for Woofz, the company is not only expanding into new verticals such as health, wellness, and grooming services, but also collaborating with US organizations that offer emotional support animal certifications, leveraging technology to position itself as a comprehensive lifestyle solution for dog owners, blending elements of business, technology, and lifestyle to cater to its users.
