[My Pet] Has Our Dog's Patellar Luxation Worsened?..."The Answer Lies in 'Housekeeper Life'"

⑪ Interview with Pet Friends CEO Yoon Hyun-shin
1.62 Million Members... Largest in the Industry
E-commerce + Community... Communication Space for Pet Owners
Last Year’s Sales and Transaction Volume Surpassed 100 Billion KRW
Veterinarians Also Respond... Purchase Increases with Product Recommendations

"Raising a pet is much like raising a child, requiring the guardian's consistent attention and support. From the moment a pet is weaned off its mother's milk, it undergoes training in toileting, walking, and socialization, and from becoming an adult dog or cat to becoming a senior and eventually leaving our side, various issues and questions inevitably arise. The commerce community 'Jipsa Saenghwal' created by PetFriends serves as a communication channel where pet families share experiences and know-how and help each other."

Yoon Hyun-shin, CEO of PetFriends.
[Photo by PetFriends]

In an era where 15 million people in Korea raise pets, there is a company that launched a specialized online commerce community service called 'Jipsa Saenghwal' for pet owners who cherish their dogs, cats, and other pets as if they were their own children.

Yoon Hyun-shin, CEO of PetFriends, said in an interview with Asia Economy on the 21st, "Jipsa Saenghwal has seen a 15-fold increase in cumulative users just seven months after launching the service," adding, "During the same period, usage rates increased sevenfold."

Launched by PetFriends in September last year, Jipsa Saenghwal is a space where 1.62 million PetFriends customers can share information and communicate with each other. It offers sections such as 'Parenting Tips,' 'Parenting Questions,' 'Veterinarian Consultation,' 'Jipsa Diary,' 'Pettion Show,' 'Petterior,' 'My Pet Pride,' 'Jipsa Diary,' and 'Adoption.'

CEO Yoon explained, "Jipsa Saenghwal is a space where users share and communicate various information such as what kind of food and snacks they give their dogs and cats, how much time they spend walking them, and how to prevent and treat various diseases pets may experience, including skin diseases, gastroenteritis, patellar luxation, tracheal collapse, tick and parasite infections."

He added, "When raising pets at home, there is no aspect of care that does not require the owner's touch?from providing water and food, assisting and cleaning up after toileting, walking, administering various vaccinations, to caring for illnesses like patellar luxation or surgeries. When veterinary clinics are closed during early morning hours or there is no nearby animal hospital, opening the PetFriends application and asking questions in the Jipsa Saenghwal community allows users to receive faster answers and get help with emergency treatment."

He continued, "A distinctive feature is the active communication between so-called 'max-level Jipsa' with extensive pet-raising experience and novice Jipsa who have just started raising pets. Since commerce is the foundation, natural communication occurs through genuine reviews of products purchased by other pet owners, and there is also a service within Jipsa Saenghwal where professional veterinarians directly answer questions, allowing users to ask questions and obtain highly reliable information."

PetFriends Community Service Popularity Status. [Data provided by PetFriends]

Ultimately, this leads to purchases of pet products such as strollers, snacks, food, medicines, toys, furniture, and clothing, according to analysis.

According to CEO Yoon, the repurchase rate within one month for customers who used Jipsa Saenghwal was 12% higher than for those who did not use it. In particular, the repurchase rate of new customers was 50% higher than that of existing customers. CEO Yoon analyzed, "New customers rely on the information and know-how they gain from the community, which naturally leads to purchases."

Accordingly, PetFriends' sales have naturally increased. PetFriends recorded its highest-ever sales of 28.1 billion KRW in the first quarter of this year, a 15.6% increase compared to the same period last year. With the industry's largest membership base of 1.62 million, it is expected to achieve breakeven based on operating profit within the year, and its growth momentum is anticipated to accelerate. At the end of last year, PetFriends recorded its largest-ever sales of 103 billion KRW and transaction volume of 123.4 billion KRW, marking the largest scale in the industry.

CEO Yoon graduated from Seoul National University with a degree in Economics in 2002 and earned a master's degree from Columbia Business School in 2012. He has extensive practical knowledge and experience in consumer goods marketing, sales, and management consulting, having worked at McKinsey, Johnson & Johnson, Boston Consulting Group (BCG), Coupang, and McKinsey.

Since joining PetFriends in 2021, CEO Yoon says he was immediately impressed by the company's sincere culture toward pets. He said, "It is a blessing to be able to spend a day at work 'legally' with pets without any restrictions. The role of a Jipsa?changing pets' water and food and cleaning their toilets?is an essential task that cannot be skipped even for a day."

A dog that came to work with an employee is interacting with the employee at the Pet Friends headquarters office in Gangnam-gu, Seoul. Photo by Moon Hyewon

As CEO Yoon mentioned, PetFriends has a pet-friendly corporate culture. He said the company feels a responsibility to solve employees' pet-raising issues first to capture the hearts of pet owners.

According to CEO Yoon, more than half of the employees at PetFriends' headquarters in Sinsa-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul, come to work accompanied by their pets every morning.

He explained that allowing pets at work helps reduce employees' emotional stress and is recommended from a welfare perspective. He also advised that ideas gained while spending time with pets during work hours can be applied to marketing, sales, and promotional strategies.

CEO Yoon said, "Our ultimate business direction is to help customers obtain necessary information for pet raising, receive emotional support, and purchase needed products from a trusted place. Pets and their owners are connected by a strong bond. Understanding that pet satisfaction leads directly to customer satisfaction is key."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.