by $4.6 billion over the next five years. Pet Circle CEO Mike Frizell told Inside Retail that many pet insurance offerings aren’t up to scratch, with more that 85 per cent of all policies in this space having rigid sub-limits.  Pet Circle’s offering includes a $30,000 annual limit for dogs, no sub-limits, and optional 360 add-on service covering (among other things) dental and hydrotherapy. The move into insurance is supported by the company’s Series C $125 million funding round in late 2021.  According to Frizell, the brand developed a separate team within the core business to launch the insurance policy, and pitch it back to the business in order to receive capital. This, he said, allowed the team to build its pet insurance quickly, and allocate resources autonomously. “Pet Circle has an engaged base of customers, [and] offering a robust pet insurance policy that pet parents can trust is a natural evolution,” Frizell said. He believes that sub-limits in particular are a huge issue in the pet insurance industry, with common claims – such as consultations, tick paralysis or cruciate ligament ruptures – becoming extremely expensive to treat.  For instance, he explained that the average cap on tick paralysis is $1200, but Pet Circle has seen claims of up to $4,300. With no sub-limits, he maintained that customers would be open to switching insurance providers so they have more control over their policies.   “There are lots of pet insurance policies that include sub limits and ‘gotchas’, but we are focused on transparency and empowering pet parents and vets to help shape the market for the better,” he said. Pressure off According to Frizell, there continues to be an appetite for a wide range of pet products following Covid-19 restrictions. Pet owners, he said, were constantly on the lookout for the right products, based on the breed, lifestyle and life stages of their pets.  He asserted that there is also a growing appetite for quality pet insurance, with customers trusting the brand as a pet specialist. And, amid growing cost of living pressures, he said that more customers would likely opt in to pet insurance. “If your pet gets sick or injured, you need a plan. For lots of people, they like to have pet insurance to cover unexpected vet bills, as this can be a budgeting tool,” he said. “In a time of financial hardship, pet insurance as a way to pay vet bills can really take the pressure off in a stressful situation.” Best in class Throughout Covid-19 pandemic restrictions, Pet Circle grew rapidly as customer demand intensified, with more people owning pets during this period. In 2021, it more than doubled grooming item sales, while bed sales increased by over six-fold during this period. Frizell said that the brand continued to grow following the pandemic boom, with Pet Circle holding about 60 per cent of the share of the online pet supplies market in Australia. The brand recently launched Android and iOS apps to support more direct buying opportunities, and used the 2021 funding round to expand its fulfilment centres, with four centres – covering the size of “over nine football fields” – across Australia. The brand has also expanded its last-mile delivery with a new, privately owned and operated delivery fleet in Perth.  The overall aim, Frizell said, is to make shopping more convenient for its customers. “We will continue to use it to accelerate Pet Circle’s continued growth as we continue to develop our best-in-class software platform,” he said.