Wag to go public in SPAC deal

Pet services company Wag is going public by merging with blank-check firm CHW Acquisition Corp in a deal valued at $350 million. Assuming no redemptions from the CHW shareholders, the transaction will deliver approximately $175 million in gross cash proceeds to the combined company, which will be majority owned by Wag’s shareholders.

Founded in 2015, Wag is mainly known for its dog walking app that allows pet owners to book dog walkers. The company offers additional services such as pet sitting, drop-in visits, consultations with licensed pet experts and both in-person and digital training services across 4,600 cities in all 50 states. The Wag platform has ~350,000 approved pet caregivers who completed over 11 million services to date.

The company also has an insurance angle – its subsidiary Compare Pet Insurance Services, Inc. operates Petinsurer.com , a website for comparing pet insurance.

The comparison service operates under Wag Wellness, which also includes Wag Health (telemedicine) and Petted (another pet insurance comparison website). The unit generated just over a million dollars between January and October of 2021.

“Our announcement today represents a significant milestone in our journey to build the leading premium wellness and services platform for pets. We are transforming the fragmented and largely offline pet wellness and services industries through our vertically integrated mobile-first technology platform. This deal will provide us with the funds to further fuel our growth, and I am excited to be partnering with the CHW team to accelerate our strategic initiatives and consolidate pet wellness and services as we strive to become the leader in this space.” – Garrett Smallwood, CEO of Wag.

“We are incredibly pleased by the opportunity to partner with Wag! on this exciting journey. Wag!’s strong leadership brings proven experience, and we are thrilled to be supporting this team, trusted brand and attractive platform. We are confident in Wag!’s ability to accelerate its momentum by executing against its proven growth strategies and consolidating this attractive market. We look forward to working with Garrett and his team.” – Jonah Raskas, co-CEO of CHW.