Seattle-based Rover Group Inc. (Nasdaq: ROVR) is looking for ways deepen its connection with customers amid strong revenue growth.
The pet-services marketplace in March debuted branded Rover merchandise called Rover Gear in its online store, including items such as leashes, harnesses and the "bag buddy," a hands-free poo carrier.
"We'll continue to experiment," said Aaron Easterly, co-founder and CEO of Rover. "Rover Gear, (training platform) GoodPup and even our blog, they're avenues to try and get people to have a deeper day-to-day relationship with Rover and helping build a category."
Rover, which released its latest financial results on Monday, generated $41.1 million in revenue during the first quarter, a 48% year-over-year increase. Its net loss narrowed to $4.7 million, down from $8.1 million in Q1 2022.
There were 1.5 million total bookings on Rover during the first quarter compared with 1.2 million during the first quarter of last year. Gross booking volume was $209.4 million during the first quarter, a 36% year-over-year increase.
The company's share price jumped over 20% after Rover posted its results, and it's up 17% for the year, closing at $4.75 Thursday.
Rover, founded in 2011, offers a website to connect pet owners with services like walkers and sitters. The company went public in 2021 through a merger with a special purpose acquisition company.
Although Rover laid off half of its 500-person workforce due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the company is now back to almost 500 employees. Although Easterly said hiring has slowed since early last year, the company is still looking for employees in roles necessary for public companies, like legal and finance.
Rover's business benefited from a spike in pet adoption during the pandemic, even if it took years before people felt comfortable traveling or going to an office — activities that would have typically driven people to its website in search of pet-care services. Although the pet adoption driver has slowed over the past year, Easterly said, the company is still happy about its growth.
"We see some sluggishness in the overall category demand," Easterly said. "We seem to be outgrowing the category materially, which implies some level of market share gains. That could be market share versus other commercial providers or market share versus using your friend, family and neighbor."
