Local startup Smartsy receives half a million euro investment – Smart dog houses from Serbia coming to Austria

Local startup Smartsy, a two-time StarTech grantee, whose smart dog houses allow pet owners to safely leave their dog while shopping and track it via an app, has secured an investment of 500,000 euros and entry into the Austrian market.

The investment was secured by an appearance on the show 2 Minuten 2 Millionen on the Austrian channel Puls 4, the local equivalent of the famous “Shark Tank” format and one of the most watched startup shows in Europe. The investor is Austrian serial entrepreneur Alexander Schutz, CEO of the investment company Schutz Family Office, who was also a member of the show’s jury.

Behind this startup are Teodora Pecanac and Ivan Milikic, and six more associates have joined them in the development in the meantime. The production capacity is up to 50 houses per day, and the houses are already active in front of an IKEA store in Croatia.

For Teodora, the appearance in Vienna and the attention of investors are not a coincidence, but the result of long-term work and support received through domestic innovation programs, including StarTech.

The first houses will be installed this spring in front of BILLA stores, part of one of the largest European retail chains, the REWE group. They are designed for dogs of all sizes, and the owner can monitor their pet live at any time via the application. Using the house and the application is completely free for users.

– It is no small feat for a product developed in Serbia to be presented on that television platform and to gain the attention of investors and audiences in Austria and wider Europe – Pecanac told Forbes Serbia, adding that Vienna, as one of the leading European “smart city” centers, represents an ideal springboard for further expansion into Germany, Switzerland and the rest of the European market.

Let us remind that the startup Smartsy is a two-time StarTech grantee, in 2022 and 2023.

Smartsy doo Beograd

Smartsy

StarTech

Schutz Family Office

Alexander Schutz

Teodora Pećanac

Ivan Milikić