fetch! Dog Treats

Simple. Safe. Trusted.

Jackie Lovern's inspiration for fetch! Dog Treats began in August of 2012, following a veterinarian trip with her newly adopted Miniature Schnauzer, Sgt. Pepperoni. During the vet's exam, he stressed the importance of healthy feeding habits for her pet, which ultimately sent Lovern in search of dog treats made with natural and nutrient-rich ingredients. To her surprise, she found none. That's what led the determined pet owner to start experimenting with her dog treat recipes and sharing them with family and friends. In a matter of months, her desire to feed Sgt. Pepperoni treats, a quality that she would eat herself, turned into a business, as people started clamoring for her healthy, tasty treats to share with their dogs.

Finding the recipe for success

In 2012, the year Jackie adopted Sgt. Pepperoni, there were media reports of dogs becoming sick and even dying due to the poor quality, inexpensive pet treats being imported to the United States and purchased by dog owners. By mid-2012, the FDA was investigating over 1,000 such claims.

A new dog mom, herself, Jackie, set out to develop a solution by creating her line of limited ingredient biscuits made of pure, restaurant-quality ingredients. They were healthier, more beneficial, and completely all-natural. After all, she figured if she wouldn't eat them herself, why would she give them to her dog?

In the end, she came up with three different limited ingredient recipes that were all hits with Sergeant Pepperoni. On one of her daily walks with her pup, it occurred to her that other dog owners and their dogs could benefit from her biscuits. Within weeks, she found herself set up at a local farmers market where her homemade dog treats were an immediate success, and fetch! Dog Treats was born.

A plan is born 

In July of 2014, Lovern met John Griveas, a Navy Seabee veteran and single father of two who immediately saw the potential for success in both Lovern and her dog treats. By the end of the year, the pair agreed to form an LLC and together worked methodically to create a scalable brand of products in the growing pet food industry. Slowly the business grew and expanded based on Jackie's flavorful and nourishing recipes, the couple's shared passion for the product, and their sweat equity.

The pack is formed

Since forming the LLC, Griveas has used his flair for networking and talent for marketing/sales to forge several vital partner relationships that have kept the business moving forward. They now have a team of advisors and mentors from multiple disciplines, including Ron Smith, the successful pet supply industry icon and owner of LADS Pet Supplies, and Steve Trubiano, current Vice President of Finance for iHeart Radio. The foundation of such partnerships has laid the groundwork for fetch! to expand from regional to national markets and beyond.

The dog days of fetch!

As a startup, Lovern produced and packaged all fetch! products in her cramped suburban Buffalo, NY kitchen. The challenges she faced were many, including taste testing the perfect balance of all-natural ingredients, ensuring the shelf-life of her products, and making sure to hand tape a business card on the packing of every bone and treat. Today, Lovern creates her successful fetch! line of dog treats in her commercial bakery complete with industrial ovens, a dehydration system, professional branding, inventory control, recurring sales from multiple sales channels, and a popular retail space attached.

Trending in the right direction

Since forming the partnership in 2015, fetch! has experienced steady growth in revenue, customer acquisition, and retail brand partners, thanks in part to the increase in awareness generated by organic social media posts, digital ads, events, distribution deals, and word of mouth. After building a new website in November of 2019, the company saw an immediate increase in conversions and repeat sales and is on track in 2020 to surpass all previous online sales totals combined. Sales forecasts suggest that with the right digital strategy, fetch! can dramatically increase online sales, improve brand support, and lower the cost to acquire new customers.

Recession-proof market

Many theorize that the pet industry is "recession-proof." There might be no better way to test that theory than by inserting a global pandemic into your sales plan. While second-quarter numbers showed a drop in B2C and B2B sales due to the various travel restrictions, quarantines, and cancelations in place across the country, both order size and frequency have increased on Chewy, Amazon, and FetchMeATreat.com, with current online sales already exceeding those in 2019.

According to the American Pet Products Association (APPA), in 2019, 63-million U.S. households claimed ownership of at least one of the 89-million dogs in the United States. Based on our Company analytics, our ideal customer is a middle-class female between the ages of 25 to 64. Those demographics equal approximately 86.1 million Americans, of which about 49.9 million own at least one dog. Sales numbers prove that, on average, pet owners spend $76 annually on treats. Assuming that data is correct, the majority fetch! demographic spends around $3.7B annually on just treats. The typical customer on FetchMeATreat.com spends $42.27 per visit.

Next steps

The main initiatives for fetch! coming into 2020 were to complete a packaging upgrade, implement a targeted brand support strategy for brick and mortar partners, and launch a full-scale digital marketing and re-targeting campaign. By re-designing their packaging and creating assets that their brand partners can utilize, fetch! Dog Treats will become a better sell-through inventory product. That will open new sales doors previously unavailable due to a perceived lack of awareness or support. We will bolster those efforts by designing and implementing a cohesive, strategic digital campaign mixing organic and paid content, email marketing, scheduled promotions, loyalty programs, and more.

Use of Funds

A successfully funded campaign will allow fetch! to immediately restart production and fulfill any previously rejected purchase orders and partner requests that they may have on hold, as well as cover all costs associated with operating the business, with a six to eight-month runway built-in. At the same time, they ramp back up on inventory and begin marketing. If funded at the maximum level, fetch! plans to hire one full-time production assistant and rehire at least one of their existing part-time employees as well. Marketing will play a significant role in moving forward, as years of critical analytical data waits to be used to continue building brand awareness, creating brand affinity, and generating sales across all channels. Finally, 7.5% is set aside to cover WeFunder's incredibly fair platform fee.

Invest today - Your dog will thank you later

The fetch! company that Lovern and Griveas envision dedicates to providing customers with affordable, high quality, healthy, and safe alternatives to most mass-produced dog treats. They are committed to providing exceptional customer service to ensure that customers are 100% satisfied with the brand experience. They have been executing their mission successfully for nearly eight years. With your help, they are ready to spend the next eight years and beyond making fetch! a household name across the United States.

How many people do you know who would try fetch! Dog Treats for their special pup at least once? How many of those dog owners would likely continue to purchase such a reasonably-priced, healthy product that their dog loves?

Join us on this extraordinary journey to provide dogs with healthier foods by hitting that "Invest" button now, and your fur-baby will become part of a business project that they will enjoy!