Case: Boqii Holding Ltd. (2014 Series B)
Table of Content:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Boqii in 2014 – Raised US$25M
Company Profile
Executive Management
Others (links of website, introduction video)
Case Assumptions
Glossary
1. Boqii in 2014 – Raised US$25M (Series B)
With pet ownership set to boom, Chinese pet product ee-store
store nets $25
million in funding [in 2014]
Shanghai-based
based pet products ee-store Boqii has just completed a $25 million series B
funding round, according Chinese tech blog 36kr
36kr. The investors are as-yet
yet unnamed but
reportedly hail from the US and possibly include Goldman Sachs, which also participated
in the startup’s series A round last June.
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Established in 2008, Boqii originated as a retailer of pet foods and pet
pet-related
related products. It
had its own standalone website, but was best known in China for its outlets on Taobao,
Tmall, Jingdong and other well
well-known Chinese e-commerce
commerce sites. In the years since its
establishment, Boqii has added a wiki, social forums, group buying deals, and directories
in order to increase stickiness and move into new areas. It has also developed an in-house
in
brand of pet products.
Bark at the moon
36kr states that Boqii has
as racked up over three million registered users to date. The
newest funding will be used to ramp up marketing and branding, as well as moving into
online-to-offline
offline services, though further details on that front are scarce.
Why should we care about this investment? In the coming years, the market for petpet
related goods in China is set to boom. According to Euromonitor,, only seven percent of
Chinese households
ds own dogs, and only two percent own cats. (For rough comparison’s
sake, the Human Society estimates that over 40 percent of US households contain at least
one dog). Meanwhile, only 10 percent of China’s pet owners feed their pets commercial
pet food. Euromonitor estimates that purchases of pet
pet-related
related goods in China will grow at
least ten percent a year. Even so, China still ranks number th
three
ree in terms of aggregate
ownership of cats and dogs, behind Brazil and the US. In other words – Chinese people
own a ton of pets, they’ll likely own a ton more soon, and as household income increases,
Rover will get a taste of some finer canine cuisine.
Other Chinese players vying for the wallets of internet
internet-savvy pet owners
include Epetbar and Goumin.
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(Source: 36kr https://www.techinasia.com/with-pet-ownership-set-to-boom-chinese-pet-producte-store-boqii-nets-25-million-in-funding (B funding USD25M 2014)) (Editing by Steven
Millward; top image via Flickr user CapnGimp)
2. Company Profile
Boqii Holding Limited (“Boqii”) is a leading pet-focused platform in China. At Boqii, our vision
is to connect people and pets.
Launched in 2008, we offer a one-stop destination for pet parents in China to purchase
everything pet-related and share their passion for taking care of their pets. We operate our own
online sales platform Boqii Mall, which can be accessed through our mobile app, website,
WeChat mini programs, as well as flagship stores on third-party e-commerce platforms. Through
these online sales platforms, we provide customers with convenient access to a wide selection of
high-quality pet products and an engaging and personalized shopping experience. Our
informative and interactive content platform, Boqii Community, allows users to share their pet
parenting experiences and discover new products and ways to make their pets healthier and
happier. Over the years, we are redefining e-commerce for pet parents by providing an accessible,
personalized and enjoyable shopping experience based on a deep understanding of our customers
and their pets through data analytics of extensive user interactions and transactions.
3. Executive Management
Hao (Louis) Liang
Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and Director
Hao (Louis) Liang has served as our Chairman, Chief Executive Officer
and Director since 2012, and is currently in charge of overall strategic
planning and management. Mr. Liang has 13 years of experience in
management and strategy, with a deep understanding of the internet, pet
and media industries. Prior to joining us, Mr. Liang was the chief
operational officer of PPLive Inc., director of Tencent Video and one of
the earliest product managers of QQ. Mr. Liang obtained his bachelor’s
degree in computer science from Guilin Electronic Technology University.
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Yingzhi (Lisa) Tang
Co-Chief Executive Officer, Chief Financial Officer and Director
Yingzhi (Lisa) Tang has served as our co-Chief Executive Officer, Chief
Financial Officer and Director since 2012, and currently manages our
private labels business, the online community, MCN & content
marketing, all external cooperation agreements and human resources.
Ms. Tang has 12 years of experience in internet, pet, and media
industries along with expertise in financial investment and mergers and
acquisitions. Prior to joining Boqii, Ms. Tang was the marketing director
of PPLive Inc. and the head of Tencent’s business services department. Ms. Tang obtained her
bachelor’s degree in computer science from Tongji University.
Di (Jackie) Chen
Senior Vice President and Director
Di (Jackie) Chen has served as our Senior Vice President and Director
since 2012, and is currently in charge of procurement, warehouse
management and the private label business. Mr. Chen has over 12 years
of experience in manufacturing, supply chain management and
operations, as well as pet industries. Prior to joining us, Mr. Chen was
the product director of Beijing Love Dog Network Technology Co., Ltd.
and founder of Nanjing Aiqi Pet Hospital. Mr. Chen obtained his
bachelor’s degree in animal medicine from Nanjing Agricultural University. Mr. Chen is also a
licensed veterinarian.
Ying (Christina) Zhang
Co-Chief Financial Officer
Ying (Christina) Zhang has served as our Co-Chief Financial Officer
since 2013, and is currently in charge of financial reporting, internal
controls and capital management. Ms. Zhang has 12 years of experience
in financial management, audit, investment and financing business. Prior
to joining us, Ms. Zhang worked at KPMG and CVCapital. Ms. Zhang
obtained her bachelor’s degree in materials science from Fudan
University.
Josh Horwitz · 3 Mar 2014 · 2 min read
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4. Others:
Boqii website: http://ir.boqii.com/
Boqii brand introduction video: http://ir.boqii.com/Executive-Management (Please note the
figures indicated in the video are the projected figures since the case timeline is in 2014)
5. Case Assumptions:
Year
2014
Fundraising Round:
Series B
Revenue:
US$48M
Tax rate:
25%
Investor’s Expected IRR:
>30%
*Investment Amount:
*US$25M
*Equity percentage:
*20%
*Negotiable
Note: The assumptions are made up for the classroom discussion only. Professor
reserves the right to revise the assumptions as appropriate.
6. Glossary:
“active buyer” in a given period refers to a registered account, identified by a phone number, or,
in the case of Xingmu, by a name, that confirmed one or more shipped orders on our online sales
platforms; for the avoidance of doubt, our active buyers include both individual customers and
small and medium pet businesses;
“brand owner” refers to a company engaging in the production and sale of branded pet goods;
“brand partner” refers to a specific brand owner whose products are sold via our online sales
platforms and offline network;
“CAGR” refers to compound annual growth rate;
“GMV” refers to gross merchandise volume, which is the total value of confirmed orders placed
with us and sold through distribution model or drop shipping model where we act as a principal
in the transaction regardless of whether the products are delivered or returned, calculated based
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on the listed prices of the ordered products without taking into consideration any discounts. With
respect to products sold by Xingmu, such GMV is calculated based on the suggested retail prices
of the ordered products without taking into consideration any discounts and regardless of
whether the products are delivered or returned. For the avoidance of doubt, the total GMV
amounts disclosed in This annual report (i) includes GMV of products sold by Xingmu, (ii)
excludes products sold through consignment model and
(iii) excludes the value of services offered by us;
“KOL,” refers to key opinion leaders, or individuals who have the power to engage and
impact people within a specific community or field;
“MAU” refers to monthly active user, or the aggregate number of unique devices that were used
to access our online platforms at least once in a given month. Our MAUs are calculated using
internal company data, treating each distinguishable device as a separate MAU even though
some users may access our platforms using more than one device and multiple users may access
our platforms using the same device;
“online platforms” refers to our online sales platforms and our content platform.
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