Leap Venture Studio

Leap Venture Studio is the world's first and largest pet care startup accelerator, founded in 2018 as a joint initiative between Mars Petcare, the world's largest pet care company, Michelson Found Animals, an animal welfare organization, and TAW Ventures, founded by Jane Lauder. Based in Los Angeles, the program selects 6 to 8 companies per cohort and runs a 12-week accelerator offering $200,000 in funding per startup. Rachel Sheppard (Director of Ventures, Mars Petcare) and Phillip Kim (Executive Director, Michelson Philanthropies) co-lead the program. As of 2025, Leap Venture Studio has run 9 cohorts and invested in 57 companies across 17 markets globally. Portfolio companies have collectively raised over $200 million in follow-on capital. The studio invests at pre-seed and seed stages and leads rounds. Cohort 9, which kicked off in Nashville in 2025, featured companies including BistroCat, Buddy Bites, Happy Howl, James and Ella, and Petcademy. Cohort 10 is scheduled for August through November 2026, with a focus on pet longevity, wellness, and senior pet care. The portfolio spans pet food and nutrition, pet health diagnostics, pet technology, and animal welfare. Two successful exits have been achieved: PetHospice and Lacuna Diagnostics. Leap selects companies based on traction, product-market fit, in-market learnings, team composition, and demonstrated social impact. The program includes the Leap Venture Academy, providing educational and support programming beyond the core accelerator curriculum. Mars Petcare's global distribution network, brand relationships, and retail reach give portfolio companies an unparalleled commercial development partner at the earliest stage of company formation.