Pet Care

In Canada, in 2020 there are 27.9 million pets, close to 60% of which are dogs and cats. More than 63% Canadians owned pets in 2020. The pandemic brought a surge of 18% in pet ownership. The trend will continue to grow with the millennial population being most likely to have pets.

The market for pet care in North America is estimated to be worth USD 103 billion in 2020 and growing at the CAGR of 3.1% between 2021 to 2027. In an article published by American Pet Products Association, Americans spent USD 70 billion on their pets, out of which USD 6 billion was on pet care services like grooming or boarding. This number grew to USD 95 billion in 2019 which demonstrated their rising ability and willingness to spend on pets.

Joanne and her husband, Dean, started a dog walking business called Who Let The Dogs Out in 2009 and soon after, pivoted it into one of the best dog daycares in Port Moody, British Columbia, Canada. The business provides daycare and boarding services to small dog breeds.

Phil and Anna were high school best friends who shared intense love and care for dogs. They decided to turn their passion into action by purchasing their first dog daycare business in Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada. As the business grew, they opened a second location and renamed the company Lucky’s. The business offers a wide range of services including daycare, boarding, grooming and dental cleaning.

Jacky and her husband, Mike, came to Canada from the UK many years ago. After building their life career in sales and marketing, Jacky and Mike founded Wag’n’Woof in New Westminster, British Columbia, Canada. The business offers dog daycare and boarding services to small dog breeds.

Retired early from his software engineer job, Ignacio convinced his wife, Paula to start a business. Ignacio and Paula took over Alley Cats Hotel as part of the ranch they purchased in Pitt Meadows, British Columbia, Canada. The business offers overnight boarding service specifically for cats.

Direct to Consumers

E-commerce has been growing rapidly the last several years, however, COVID-19 has accelerated the growth of e-commerce even more, especially D2C. In fact, in 2020, D2C had an impressive growth rate of over 45%. In a recent report, KPMG estimate that E-commerce sales will reach USD7.4 trillion by 2025 with a CAGR of 12%. Of that, D2C segment is expected to reach USD161.22 billion by 2024.

Joe, Max and Tina founded Fable in 2020 to offer consumers another option for home decors and furnitures beyond the traditional retailers like Ikea, Pottery Barn or Crate & Barrel. Fable is a certified B-Corp that strives to deliver products that are responsibly designed and sustainably crafted.

Technology

Clean Energy

As a growing number of countries have pledged to phase out internal combution engines or have ambitious vehicle electrification targets for the coming decades in an effort to reduce their carbon footprint, the market for renewable energy, clean energy and electric vehicles (EVs) becomes more dynamic and exciting. Sales of electric vehicles doubled in 2021 from the previous year to a new record of 6.6 million. Back in 2012, just 120 000 electric cars were sold worldwide. In 2021, more than that many are sold each week. Nearly 10% of global car sales were electric in 2021, four times the market share in 2019. This brought the total number of electric cars on the world’s roads to about 16.5 million, triple the amount in 2018.

Public spending on subsidies and incentives for EVs nearly doubled in 2021 to nearly USD 30 billion. While electric car sales in the US, China, the EU and other developed economies are skyrocketting, in other emerging and developing economies, where the few models that are available remain unaffordable for mass-market consumers. In Brazil, India and Indonesia, fewer than 0.5% of car sales are electric. However, EV sales doubled in a number of regions in 2021 – including in India which could pave the way for quicker market uptake by 2030 if supporting investments and policies are in place. Because of the price barrier, electrification of road transport in emerging and developing economies should prioritise two/three-wheelers and urban buses.

Nguyen, Hai and Quang founded Selex Motors in 2018 in a small 10m2 office with a grand vision of promoting Vietnam’s sustainable development through the use of smart electric vehicles. Specifically, Selex Motors strive to transform Vietnam’s and SEA’s transportation industry by developing a comprehensive ecosystem for smart EV including electric motorbikes, IoT batteries and battery swapping stations.

Education

Vietnam has one of the highest spending on education and training, averaging 17-18% of the state budget. This number grew to USD57 billion in 2017, up 18.8% since 2016. While this is short of the target of 20%, it is still on par or higher than other countries’ education expenditure, for example, 13% in the US or 17.5% in Indonesia.

As a percentage of GDP, Vietnam’s education expenditure grew from 3.57% in 2000 to 5.65% in 2013, outpaced the rate at which global’s average education expenditure grew, which was 3.91% in 2000 and 4.68% in 2013.

Private education sector, from kindergarten to high school (K-12), sees skyrocketing growth due to rapid economic expansion. The Vietnam’s education sector is divided into 4 groups: international, bilingual, private national and public. Noteably, the bilingual segment saw a whooping 17% growth annually between 2016 and 2020. Due to the nation’s rising disposable income level and the surging demand for quality English-based education, a large proportion of the 3 million K-12 students in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City is gravitating toward bilingual school segment.

Catherine founded Green Shoots International School in 2010 first as a way to offer great international education for her and fellow expats’ kids. In a short few years, Green Shoots International School became the international school of choice for residents of Da Nang and Hoi An.