My Business Has Gone to the Dogs – Biz Spotlite of the Week!
August 08, 2013 • Product Reviews
Joanna Rein, President and Top Dog of Soggy Doggy sat down with FIDO Friendly magazine to share her story – it’s our Biz Spotlite of the Week!
What motivated you to start your business?
I’m the mother of four young kids and Buddy, a rescue lab-collie mix. I could never train my kids to wipe Buddy’s paws when they brought him into the house from the wet yard. There were multiple doormats and piles of towels by the back door, but nothing could combat the mess. Finally, out of frustration, I decided to make my own doormat for wet, mucky dogs.
How did you come up with the name?
When I created the Soggy Doggy Doormat®, there were no other doormats for dogs on the market. I was looking for a name that would quickly and simply convey what the product was. And every dog owner knows exactly what a “soggy doggy” is! The name explains the problem and whom the product is for.
What type, if any, research did you do in assessing the consumer market?
I knew from looking for a dog doormat for my own house that they didn’t exist. But honestly, I didn’t know if the consumer market would be receptive to my idea of if I was the only person chronically annoyed by sloppy paw mess. I started the business with just one product -the beige doormat. I had 500 pieces delivered to my house and I sold them to pet stores that I could visit while my children were in school. There were some rainy days when I would sell 3 or 4 pieces to a store and return home to find the store had called looking for more already! That was when I realized I had found a real need and developed a meaningful product.
What were the biggest hurdles in marketing your products?
The biggest threat to the Soggy Doggy business is imitation. The business has grown first and foremost through word-of-mouth. We’re family owned and operated and we do not have big advertising budgets. We rely on our customers to spread the word – and so many do through positive reviews and generous social media comments. We’ve had bigger companies knock us off already. It’s deflating and challenging. But we are the original and as a small business we try to set ourselves apart by providing excellent customer service. By listening to our customers and their needs we’ve expanded our product line to include other “soggy doggy” solutions, including the Super Shammy (a towel with hand pockets for drying wet bellies) and Slopmat (a placemat that fits under kitchen counters and actually soaks up spilled water rather than letting it pool on the mat). We recently introduced a line of doormats without the bone decoration – and this was all because our customers asked for it and we listened.
What is on the horizon for your company?
We’re introducing a new addition to our Soggy Doggy line this fall. Can’t tell you what it is yet, but I will say that the idea came from our satisfied four-legged customers!
For more information and to order your Soggy Doggy Doormat visit http://www.soggydoggydoormat.com/
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