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Daewoong Pet, a pet-related subsidiary of Daewoong Group, made waves in the industry by appointing a young CEO in his 30s. On April 1, Daewoong Pet appointed Lee Hyo-jun as the new CEO. Operating under a dual-CEO system with Moon Jae-bong as co-CEO, Daewoong Pet plans for both CEOs to manage their respective fields of expertise to enhance efficiency and generate synergies.

CEO Lee Hyo-jun stated, "We aim to achieve a KOSDAQ listing by 2027, leading the pet nutrition market with a new paradigm of 'Human Standard' that didn’t exist in the pet supplement sector."

Q: You became the CEO of Daewoong Pet at a young age, just in your 30s, and now you are operating under a dual-CEO system. What role do you play?
A: Daewoong Pet’s strategy is for the two CEOs to handle their respective fields of expertise to increase efficiency and work together for synergy. Moon Jae-bong focuses on clinical CRO services, which he has specialized in since the company’s predecessor, Korea Veterinary Information, while I oversee the business areas of animal pharmaceutical development, pet nutrition supplements, and platform services, leveraging my experience in overseas business, sales, and startup operations.

Q: You previously worked at ‘Fitpet.’ What achievements did you accomplish there?
A: At Fitpet, I was in charge of sales and marketing, overseeing domestic online and offline distribution as well as international business. During my three years there, I increased exports from just $30,000 (approximately 39.71 million KRW) to $250,000 (approximately 340 million KRW) by the second half of 2020. By the first half of 2021, I helped Fitpet achieve $500,000 in exports, contributing significantly to its emergence as a potential unicorn company.

Q: What sets Daewoong Pet apart?
A: The key differentiator for Daewoong Pet is our development principle of "Human Standard" for our nutrition supplements. In Korea, pet products are classified under feed laws based on livestock standards, with no clear guidelines for nutritional supplements for pets. Consumers are increasingly turning to safer products, which is why "human-grade" products are gaining attention.

However, we questioned whether using only human-grade ingredients really guarantees that a product is good for pets. After analyzing the most popular pet foods on the market, we found that many lacked essential nutrients needed for pet health, and there was insufficient control over the production quality and nutrient content.

We introduced the "Human Standard" for pet nutrition supplements, raising the industry standard to the level of human health supplements. Based on this principle, we launched four pet nutrition supplements, including Impactamin Pet, in November last year. After their launch, consumer response was overwhelmingly positive. Within just two months, the products achieved monthly sales of around 100 million KRW, matching the sales of industry-leading products. We continue to see steady growth in sales across various distribution channels.

Q: Daewoong Pet has grown 70% month-over-month in the first quarter of this year. What are your goals moving forward?
A: If this growth trend continues, we are on track to achieve our goal of 1200% growth this year. This far surpasses the average growth rate of 590% for other potential unicorn companies in the domestic pet industry in their second year.

We aim to maintain this growth, becoming the industry leader in pet pharmaceuticals, nutrition supplements, clinical CRO, and platform services. Our goal is to be listed on the KOSDAQ by 2027. Drawing on my experience in helping a company grow from a 10-billion-won valuation to a 200-billion-won valuation, I plan to make Daewoong Pet the first pet unicorn company in Korea.

Q: What is the philosophy or guiding principle behind Daewoong Pet’s development?
A: Our guiding philosophy is "One Health." This concept connects the health of humans, animals, and nature, emphasizing that to ensure human health, we must also care for the health of animals and the environment. Under this philosophy, Daewoong Pet is committed to promoting the healthy coexistence of pets and their owners.

Q: Could you tell us about your future plans?
A: Daewoong Pet aims to become the first company that customers think of when it comes to pet health and healthcare. Our goal is to become the industry leader in pet nutrition supplements, pharmaceuticals, and healthcare platform services. This year, we will solidify our foundation and demonstrate our growth.

In particular, we aim to prove the excellent quality of Daewoong Pet’s nutrition supplements by achieving 5 billion KRW in sales in our first year of product launch, setting a new standard for pet health supplements. We will continue to enhance our Human Standard development principle and collaborate closely with the best human health supplement GMP facilities in Korea. Additionally, we plan to expand into new markets by developing new formulations of pet nutrition supplements, gradually upgrading the market and proving the efficacy of our products.

We are accelerating clinical trials for animal pharmaceuticals and plan to receive our first animal drug approval in the second half of next year. We aim to become the company that develops the most valuable animal pharmaceuticals.

We are also exploring international business. We are in talks to export pet nutrition supplements to over 10 countries and are discussing licensing deals for animal pharmaceuticals with global pharmaceutical companies. We expect significant progress this year. Additionally, we are preparing to introduce Daewoong Pet products directly to B2C platforms like Amazon, Shopee, and Lazada, with plans to introduce our products to U.S. customers in the second half of this year.