Thanks To Candy, My Biggest Inspiration and The Best Business Partner I Could Ask For ...
A Dog Birthday Party Led To Piggyback Treats.
A long time ago, 12 years to be exact, I was making treats for Candy's birthday! My family was called away from our home in Philly to visit family in Illinois - and my soon-to-be 2 year old babygirl would be able to meet her cousins for the first time ever! I knew her dog birthday party would have to be one to remember, but what I didn't realize, at the time, was that this simple party would ultimately lead me to start preparing treats for others - and ultimately it would lead to Piggyback Treats Company!
Look at that pic! You'll see a baby Darwin - the small dog on our logo, Candy - the birthday girl and chocolate lab on our logo, and their cousin Penny! I'm pretty sure that was the first time she had ever been asked to wear a hat... which is why you don't see her wearing one!
I ended up making several goodies for Candy's birthday party, two that morphed into treats that are still, to this day, a part of our menu of goodies! Our Cider Bier Bones were once called Candy's Apple Cookies, and our Pumpkin Bones were once called Pumpkin Cookies! I included both of these goodies, plus some items that didn't make the cut for Piggyback's menu. For her party, each treat was packaged in it's own gift wrapping, boxes, bows and all! Years of working as a professionally trained pastry chef taught me that presentation is just as important as taste. Even though humans wouldn't be eating these goodies, I wanted them to wish that they could and at the very least, find joy in unwrapping these goodies and sharing with their pets! This first round of hand-made goodies were gleefully gobbled up without one complaint! That party led me to prepare and sell treats through the website I had for my private chef business, which I established shortly after my baby girl's 2nd birthday, the party that started it all!
It's been 12 years since that wonderful birthday party. Twelve years! My sweet girl is now 14. She's still just as hungry as ever, as cuddly as a marshmallow, as sweet as a gummy bear, and still my biggest inspiration! I often tell customers that she owns the business and I work for her! If you've seen us out at events, it's likely you've met Candy and can attest to her sweetness! After the formation of my first company, which offered: private chef services, catering, special occasion cakes, wedding cakes, gift baskets, cooking lessons, kids baking parties and dog treat gift baskets too, the thought of having a second company, one purely focused on pet treats, crept into my mind! I knew it would have to be different, though. Pet treats are everywhere! My motto has always been to be different! If someone else is doing it, I would have to do it differently in order to stand out! (That story is one for another day!) Candy and I did it; you know the business today fondly as Piggyback Treats!
Looking back, I could never have imagined that treats for my pup's party could lead to this point here and now. Within 6 months of making those birthday party favors, I went on to prepare and sell goodie boxes for other dogs' birthdays, I created and sold gift baskets of goodies online, sold treats at my AKC Club's events, vended at 2 local markets, established a connection with one of the fish cleaning stations that we still use to this day, and I started making our best selling treat - Salmon Skins, which made their debut at what would become my favorite event of the year, the Harry Potter Festival. Unfortunately, that event was cancelled after the threat of a lawsuit by warner bros, but I still hold such fond memories of it. (This is also a story for another day!)
Some of my favorite things to talk about are how I got started, the challenges I was met with along the way, and how my little business morphed into the one you know now! I've said it many times, but so many things led me to create this company! (More stories for other times!) Through it all; ups, downs and sideways, I have had the consistent support of loved ones, faithful customers, and my babygirl, Candy, the best business partner I could ever ask for!
(If you're interested in following Candy's story, she has her own Instagram @CandyTheHandyLab. She'd love to have you join her on her journey!)
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