Behind the Squeak: Women in the Pet Industry

Behind the Squeak pulls back the curtain to give you a glimpse into the inner workings of ZippyPaws. Follow along as we take a look at different aspects of ZippyPaws’ role in the Pet Industry.

For our inaugural Behind the Squeak post, we’re talking to some of the women of ZippyPaws who are leading the charge and powering the Pet Industry forward. We sat down with Jen, Ashley, Jacqueline, and Lacey to ask them about their experience in the Pet Industry. 

Here’s what they had to say…

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In the saturated and competitive industry that is dog toys and accessories, what sets ZippyPaws apart from the others out there?

From the very beginning, ZippyPaws has been offering designs that resonate with modern pet owners – toys and accessories that are practical, affordable, and high quality. We are uniquely positioned in the industry with decades of manufacturing expertise and meticulous attention to detail and design. Each team member’s passion for pets shines through in every aspect of how we run our business – you won’t find a more dedicated group of dog and cat lovers anywhere else!

Having achieved great success with ZippyPaws over the past 10+ years, what has your experience as a woman within the pet industry been like?

Being a female entrepreneur in any industry is difficult, and the pet industry is no exception. However, I feel lucky that I had a lot of support from industry veterans in my earlier days. I’ve learned to only keep allies around, and gray rock the naysayers. Keeping a positive attitude is what helps get through the tough times. It’s helped to create a great working environment for my team and easy working relationships with our vendors and buyers. To pay it forward, we hire a lot of women on our team, and train them to become confident in their roles and industry.

In recent years, the pet industry has ballooned into a multi-billion-dollar industry. What is your vision for ZippyPaws’ future within the growing industry?

My goal is to grow ZippyPaws into a household name with international reach. We want to continue to bring innovative and fun products to the market without sacrificing our quality and core values. We’re working on developing more eco-minded products with sustainable materials. And of course, we’re continuing to innovate on products that promote fun ways to play, for both cats and dogs!

Being a mother of two, and a dog mom to three, how do you manage your work-life balance?

It’s definitely a balancing act teetering on the brink of collapse every other day, as I’m sure a lot of working moms can relate to! It’s easy to fall into a guilt vortex, thinking that spending time at work takes away time with my kids, and vice versa, so it’s important to remind myself to always stay even-tempered and approach problems knowing that I am doing the best that I can. Also, I outsource whenever I can to lessen my workload – having people I can trust to help both at work and at home makes life a lot easier.

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As Director of Marketing and Communication – and co-host of Dog Mom Podcast – you have a rather interesting and exciting role at ZippyPaws. What motivated you to pursue this career path, and what led to you working for ZippyPaws?

If you had asked me where I’d envisioned myself at this point in my career, I don’t think I would guess I would be working for a dog company, simply because it didn’t even cross my mind that I could merge two things that I am SO passionate about. I actually grew up wanting to work as an atelier in the fashion world or work in Marketing and PR for the music industry. Even though I don’t necessarily enjoy speaking publicly or talking to a lot of people, I found out early on that I’m not terrible at it. I spent my college years working as a personal stylist and realized that fashion itself is a form of marketing – you’re just marketing yourself. From there I was promoted to the corporate offices of one of the stores I was working at and everything kind of grew from there.

One key theme in my life has always been my love of animals. I had a beautiful golden retriever through my twenties and always found myself rescuing stray animals, volunteering at shelters, and stopping whatever I was doing to pet any dog in the vicinity. When I saw ZippyPaws was looking to build out their marketing team, something clicked in my brain. After speaking with Jen just once I knew this was my company and these would be my people. Now I’m able to take everything I’ve learned through my career and apply them in a setting that is equally fulfilling and fun, while also allowing me to give back and really challenge myself.

Philanthropic initiatives are important to you and are an integral part of ZippyPaws’ mission. What charitable causes is ZippyPaws currently involved with, and how did they come about?

Philanthropy is so important to me, both personally and from a corporate standpoint. I believe that with great power comes great responsibility and if companies are not giving back, it’s going to be very tough for consumers to align with them. To date, we’ve donated millions of dollars to various charities through custom branded dog toys. A portion of sales for every toy went directly to places like Mission K-9 and Earth’s Oceans Foundation.

We also love taking toys to local shelters and donating time (which is hugely important!) to help dogs in need receive baths, become socialized, and get adopted. Although I’m not allowed to assist in these field trips anymore because the first time I went I ended up adopting a dog. More recently, it’s been my passion project to conceptualize and build out The Zippy Foundation – our company’s new philanthropic initiative, hopefully launching in 2024. We’re also currently working with Project Street Vet, and we love them!

ZippyPaws has experienced much growth and success in recent years. What do you attribute that to, and how do you envision ZippyPaws future success? 

I think it comes down to a great product, a fun and ever-growing vertical and an amazing team. People are always going to have pets and their role in the family is constantly evolving. 30 years ago, most dogs lived outside and were lucky to get some table scraps at Thanksgiving. Today you’ve got people opting out of human, and instead deciding to cook gourmet meals for their dogs and taking them on vacation with them. You’re seeing dogs in weddings and sleeping with the family’s human children. The dynamic is shifting and that leaves a lot of doors open for innovation, which is where ZippyPaw shines. I see ZP continually expanding into new categories and remaining one of the core pillars in the industry.

Your role at ZippyPaws requires a lot of time, energy, and attention on your part. How do you strike a good work-life balance? 

It’s something I’m admittedly not very good at – but I’m actively working on it. I think anyone in Marketing and PR will tell you it’s not exactly a 9-to-5 job, it truly doesn’t sleep. Additionally, you can’t just decide when to be creative and then turn it off once you’re done working. I’m notorious for coming up with my greatest ideas over a glass of wine with girlfriends at 10pm.

That being said, I think work-life balance is so important for your mental health, and I’m a huge advocate for that with my own team. Since I don’t enjoy being a hypocrite, I’m trying to set a good example for them by taking time off, learning to shut off and telling people that they’ll just have to wait until Monday for something. Luckily I have a lot of hobbies outside of work that do help me when I’m trying to get out of that headspace. It’s a little difficult to think up the next partnership activation while I’m in the middle of a mosh pit ;).

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Being the Creative Director at ZippyPaws must be an exciting role to find yourself in. What brought you to ZippyPaws? How did your previous experience prepare you for the career you have now? 

The design field is always exciting to be a part of because it is ever changing and allows one’s creativity to continuously grow. Finding myself in the role of Creative Director at ZippyPaws is no different. The position has not only been a longtime coming, but a dream of mine since the beginning of my career in the design industry. 

I frequently used to tell colleagues how I had planned to combine two of my loves – design and dogs. This position happened to find its way to me through pure chance. I received the offer via email late one evening and from there the rest is history.

With over a decade of professional experience and a life-long list of personal achievements, I was more than prepared to accept this role at ZippyPaws. With an array of print and digital design projects under my belt I’ve experienced it all. I’ve chosen to specialize in branding and illustration. Both of which I get to frequently use in my day-to-day duties at ZippyPaws.  

In 2021, ZippyPaws underwent a significant rebrand which introduced a new logo, updated product packaging and a revamped website. Can you provide insight into the new brand style? What role did color theory play in the new branding? And, why is branding so important to ZippyPaws? 

As the company approached its 10-year anniversary it was only right to reveal a new look, while still maintaining our same charm and quality designs that our customers had grown to love and enjoy. The idea behind the new logo, updated packaging and so forth, was to show that we are maturing as a brand, just as our talented co-founder, Jen Glaser. Much had changed since the conception of ZippyPaws back in 2011. We wanted to make sure that its growth was reflected in every way possible as we continued to be innovative and the leading force in the pet industry. 

Using complementary colors, like our iconic Zippy Teal and Golden Doodle Yellow, plus a bit of monochromatic styling, applying the fundamentals of color theory has made our designs more visually impactful. Color is a powerful tool for evoking emotion and with our unique pairings, we’ve been able to establish a strong brand identity. 

Our branding is important as it’s the first thing that draws you into ZippyPaws, whether online or in-store. Branding can make or break your company and in the pet industry, that is no different. Along with the quality of product, logo, tags and packaging, and online presence, sets the tone on how you will be perceived by the public.

Having overseen the Creative Department over the past few years, what is your vision for ZippyPaws moving forward?

Moving forward, I envision the expansion and continued growth of ZippyPaws brand recognition across platforms. The face of design is always advancing and thus should ZippyPaws, not to appease trends, but to stay ahead of them and transcend the mold. Our newly found partnerships have put us in front of notable clientele, and I’d like to further capitalize off those opportunities by improving our package designs and digital footprint, while also bringing attention to the pet industry and all the philanthropic activations we have planned in the future.

Working from home with a one-year-old and a busy doggo, do you find it difficult to manage a healthy work-life balance? How do you do it? 

Being a pet parent, mother and holding a full-time position is no easy feat, but it’s always entertaining to say the least. Even before having a child, it was hard for me to have a healthy work-life balance because I get heavily invested in the projects that I work on daily, but I am learning to take a step back and reassess when necessary. 

As a new mom, improving my work-life time management has been a top goal so that I maintain my firm level of professionalism, and not sacrifice my personal time with my daughter and doggo, Bmo. There is a learning curve for sure, especially as my daughter grows into her own personality. I look forward to each day as we continue to tackle the world together. Bmo, my 10-year-old Boston Terrier, helps keep things in perspective as well as he’s been with me since the beginning of my professional career. He always knows how to nudge me to take a step back from the computer and get outside to go for a walk and enjoy the fresh air. 

Not to mention, ZippyPaws has made this new journey into parenthood easier as they promote a healthy work-life balance by allowing us to take time for ourselves when needed. From its dog-friendly office to our hybrid work environment, it’s made the transition much easier than it would be if I worked somewhere else with a strict in-office policy. Working from home has allowed me to enjoy the everyday growth of my beautiful daughter and spend treasured time with my dog as he enters his golden years.

Simply put, I take one day at a time and tackle each project as it’s thrown at me. I’m not sure what my secret is. I just like to get things done and done well to the best of my abilities.

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You’ve been designing and developing ZippyPaws products since 2020. Can you share a little about your creative background and how that led to you becoming Product Designer at ZippyPaws? 

I have been drawing since I was in diapers. I went to college for illustration and design, but while getting my degree, I fell in love with ceramics. I became obsessed with the hands-on process of creating something that could be beautiful and functional.  

With my experience in ceramics, I found my first job designing tableware and even visited several manufacturers in China. I learned so much about the product development process which carried over to my current role at ZippyPaws! Around the same time, I adopted a puppy named Bear. He was (and still is) an absolute destroyer of toys, so I was always on the hunt for a higher quality dog toy. 

I found the Product Designer job listing for ZippyPaws and took a leap of faith. Despite never designing a dog toy in my life, Jen saw something in me, and it felt so natural to design in ZippyPaw’s iconic style. Three years later, we have worked together to improve and expand the ZippyPaws toy catalog! It has been so exciting to foray into new product categories, features, and materials. We are even exploring the licensing world which has been such a wild learning experience. 

How would you describe the ZippyPaws “look” you aim for when it comes to product development?  

When creating a ZippyPaws toy, my goal is to create something aesthetically pleasing while keeping quality in mind. I want to create dog toys that make pet owners smile, whether that’s from a cute, embroidered face or a funny squeaker sound. Some of my favorite toys that I have designed are the vegetable Jigglerz. I love reading customer reviews to see how funny pet owners think the toys are, especially when carried around by small dogs. 

What challenges do you face in bringing your designs to life? 

When working on Product Development, you realize that a lot of hands are involved in the creation of one toy. A common challenge when creating a toy is to ensure that the original design is reflected in the final product. Luckily for us, we have worked with the same manufacturers since the start of the company. This working relationship makes it easy to apply the necessary changes to create the perfect toy.  

How do you stay creative and innovative? What inspires your creativity?  

I stay creative by observing the world around me, which is constantly changing. I try not to let quick trends influence my designs because they don’t feel authentic. Instead, I focus on humor which is always needed in this world. Dogs are such silly creatures, and they actually inspire me heavily when creating. 

Product Design and Development is a time-consuming process. How do you maintain a healthy work-life balance? 

Yes, Product Development can be a slow process and has taught me to be more patient! To maintain a healthy balance in my personal life, I step away from my computer completely on the weekends. Instead, I work on my ceramics which is the complete opposite environment from my office. I’m literally covered in mud. Throwing is meditative for me, so I don’t need to think. I just create things for fun.  

It’s also very important to have other interests than art because it takes a lot of mental energy. This is why I love being in nature and working out for my mental well-being. It helps me return to work creatively recharged!