UAE's Aliph Capital makes its first investment, buys out The Pet Shop

Dubai: A pet business in the UAE has caught investor attention, with Aliph Capital confirming the buyout of The Pet Shop, made up of three entities - The PetShop, DubaiPetFood.com and Petsville.

TPS was acquired from Kasamar Holdings, a family office investing in regional private equity, global real estate and public securities. As part of the takeover, Amr Hazem – the founder of Petsville – will become CEO of TPS and lead business development and expansion. He had earlier worked at Americana, BRF and Fonterra. (Petsville was founded in 2019.)

The value of the deal has not been disclosed. The UAE's pet care market is valued at $361 million (based on 2020 projections) and is the largest market in the GCC. Future growth is anticipated at CAGR of 9-11 per cent, 'driven by growth in pet ownership, a young population with a growing expat component, changing local mindsets towards pet ownership and consumers waiting longer to start families'.

"The wider GCC pet market is largely unpenetrated and highly fragmented making the region ripe for investment and consolidation," Aliph said in a statement.

“We are delighted to announce the first investment for Aliph Capital’s maiden fund, which is a perfect example of our strategy of taking active positions in mid-market growth stars," said Farah Al Mazrui, Head of Investments at Aliph Capital. "The Pet Shop is a proven leader in a market ripe for consolidation, growth and further tech enablement, and we look forward to assisting the company in its ambitious expansion plans.”

Aliph Capital - a private equity firm launched by Huda Al Lawati - had earlier raised $125 million from Abu Dhabi investment powerhouse ADQ.