This story appears in the
November 2000 issue of
Entrepreneur.
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With pets quickly joining the ranks of civilized society, why
not give them a little spending power? That was the reasoning
behind "credit cards" for pets, offered by Jay Bloom, 33,
chairman and CEO of Pet Assure Inc., a pet health-care
organization. Along with wife and Pet Assure president Carolyn
Farkas, 34, Bloom introduced the Action for Animals Master-Card,
which, in addition to its credit-card functions, offers savings
with a network of veterinary providers and dealers, and 25 percent
savings on veterinary care in the plan. "We're kind of
like an HMO for pets," says Bloom.
Bloom has championed the cause of pets before. A former
financial officer at Chase Manhattan Bank, he began the Dover, New
Jersey-based Pet Assure in 1996, after his dog underwent $3,000 hip
surgery, and his then insurance company denied the bill. It called
the ailment a "hereditary and genetic condition," and
when Bloom looked at the policy's fine print, he found the
majority of pet problems weren't covered. "They had
pre-existing condition clauses and age limitations," he says.
"Pet insurance at the time was woefully inadequate." He
also uncovered a huge market: According to the American Pet
Products Manufacturers Association, pet owners spend $23 billion
per year on their animals.
Four years later, Bloom says his latest effort-the
MasterCard-has garnered a tremendous response. Some insurance
companies are now building Pet Assure cards into their network
provider bases.
Are there more pet-related ideas to come? Most likely. With Pet
Assure operating in 46 states with more than 2,000 providers, Bloom
points out, "We're the sole national [veterinarian]
network. The success of the company comes from our ability to
leverage this core asset."
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