The legions of new pet owners might well be onto something with a data analysis showing up to 4 million pets in the UK are earning money for their owners through brand partnerships and merchandise sales.
According to data from web hosting company GoDaddy, owners of pets are increasingly turning them into side-hustle online influencers and are set to earn an average of £15,224 in 2022, with dogs (£15,627) commanding higher fees than cats (£12,895).
Almost 1.9 million Brits use the cash to supplement their salary, but, for over 832,000, pet earnings are their main source of income.
GoDaddy’s reckons these numbers could soar in the next 12 months, with 32% of pet owners looking to turn their animals into online stars in 2022, creating an additional 5.3 million animal stars in the UK by the end of next year.
The company estimates that there are around 3.6 million sites in the UK used to help raise awareness, with the potential for another 6.3 million to be registered next year.
Meanwhile, two-fifths (39%) of British consumers say they are more likely to buy products from brands who associate themselves with cute animals.
GoDaddy UK & Ireland vice-president Ben Law said: “Since the start of the pandemic, people have turned to many different side-hustles to supplement their earnings, as many industries struggled.
“Creating websites to support businesses around beloved pets is one of the more compelling and heart-warming examples we’ve seen.”
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