An interview with Calingo from our start-up network
Problem Solving Question:
What is the specific problem your startup is solving and what does the solution look like?
The problem we are addressing with Calingo is that insurance is perceived as a necessary evil and people want to spend as little time as possible on it. There is also a lack of modern and digital product offerings. We are therefore convinced that insurance must become radically simple in order to offer maximum customer convenience. This includes fair products, simple sales channels and a digital offering. And that's exactly what Calingo does. Thanks to our positioning at the point of need, we can offer customers personalized insurance at exactly the right moment, e.g. when they buy a new pet. For example, the new pet owner receives a personalized offer from the vet or the puppy from the breeder directly equipped with our pet insurance.
Question about the target:
How big is the market you are addressing and what growth potential do you see in the coming years?
The pet market is not only a fast-growing and, above all, crisis-resistant market - the number of dogs and cats in Switzerland is increasing at a rate of 2% per year. It is also one of the few underinsured markets in Switzerland. The insurance ratio for pet health insurance is below 10%. In markets such as the UK or Scandinavia, we see insurance ratios for dogs of up to 80-90%. With almost 2.5 million dogs and cats living in almost every second Swiss household (42%), there is huge potential hidden here. The trend towards more pets is also stable (started before the pandemic and continues). There are 2 strong drivers for the rising demand:
- Millennials: Instead of starting a family, more and more young people are becoming 'pet parents'. They are now the largest demographic group of pet owners.
- The ageing population, many of whom are getting pets to combat loneliness in old age.
These trends mean that not only the number of pets but also the expenditure per pet is increasing. With 27 million cats and dogs in Germany and 22.5 million in France and a market saturation similar to that in Switzerland (FR at approx. 6%, DE at approx. 20%), there is a lot of growth potential in our neighboring countries.
Dog owners spend an average of 1240 euros per year on their pets. Pet health insurance is also in vogue. Also because the scale of fees for vets in Germany was recently increased and visits to the vet are now even more expensive. Worldwide, the market for pet supplies grew by almost 9% to over 140 billion dollars (2021).
Competitiveness question:
What does your competitive landscape look like, and how do you plan to differentiate your business from existing competitors?
With only four pet health insurance providers in Switzerland, the market is not saturated on the provider side either. Our pet insurance stands out from the competition thanks to its fully digital offering, high service quality, a holistic product based on health insurance for humans (instead of property insurance) and modern product features such as a monthly right of termination. This situation on the Swiss market combined with our modern and digital product means that we can acquire customers at extremely low costs.
Scalability question:
What is your plan to scale your business model and enter international markets?
In the next stage of expansion, we will further differentiate ourselves with additional services in the pet health sector, such as electronic medical records and document storage, telemedicine, prevention and advice functions, community building, which will generate additional income as paid services and have a positive impact on customer retention and portfolio profitability. We will also tackle the similarly unsaturated but 10 times larger markets in the DACH region and France.
Question about the team and experience:
Can you tell us about the background knowledge and experience of the founding team that enables you to tackle the problem and make the company a success?
Our founding team combines in-depth knowledge not only in the insurance industry, but also in the areas of data analytics, innovation, product development and entrepreneurship. We three founders, Anina, Marlo and Daniel, have known each other for many years (from our studies and work) and form a perfect, versatile team with proven problem-solving strategies and broad background knowledge. We all have many years of experience in the insurance sector: Anina with a focus on modern sales channels and data analysis, Marlo as a lean startup expert and product developer and Daniel as a long-time entrepreneur and former Head of Innovation at one of the largest Swiss insurers. In addition to our broad network in the industry, our many years of collaboration and broad expertise help us to weather stormy times. Last but not least, our full commitment and belief in the vision of a revolution in the insurance industry is an important factor in Calingo's success.