All Natural, VEGAN, Cruelty-free pet products made using only the finest ingredients from Mother Nature’s Pantry!
Irie Pet Products began in 2013 & are formulated by Nature’s Mysteries Apothecary. They are sister companies, Nature’s Mysteries began in 2000, the pet products are a new addition to a compilation of recipes I formulate. All of our products are formulated using only the finest ingredients from Mother Nature’s Pantry. All Natural, Cruelty-free, Petroleum-Free, VEGAN & do not contain anything synthetic. Purity is our Priority. I make them all myself, so I know what’s in there. I started making soap & now I formulate over 200 different products! Over 30 of them being pet products. I only use glass pans when melting oils & butters, microwaves are never used. GMO’s are not used in any of our products. I have a website, attend two farmers markets a week during the season, a few craft shows a year & wholesale to a few stores on a small scale right now. Currently I cannot afford advertising as I try to put as much as possible back into the business to keep my inventory up.
When I branched out with the pet products a few years ago, it began at the farmers market I attend in Waitsfield, VT. I love watching all the dogs, we joke that it’s like a dog show. Then I decided to make dog shampoo, I already made shampoo & conditioner, so I researched dogs & various fur types, formulated six different shampoos & two different conditioners. They sold very well with excellent response from customers who tried them & came back to express how satisfied & pleased they were with the results from a natural product that didn’t contain anything toxic to their pet or children who get close to pets. I was delighted to receive such positive testimonials from clients. I spent alot of time researching them, nice to know they achieved the desired results.
After the numerous positive results & testimonials I received, I decided groomers would be a good market & sold my first gallon to Dirty Paws Pet Spa across the street from the Waitsfield market I attended. She informed me that pet companies do not have to disclose ingredients on labels, so you don’t even know what you’re using. She then requested I make multiple products due to the lack of availability of natural products in the industry. So, what started out as just a couple of products has blossomed into a complete line of natural petcare including products for dogs, cats & horses!
With the necessary funding, stores would not have to wait when they order. I would also invest in more inventory such as bottes, jars, tins, oils, butters, hydrosols, essential oils, labels, ink, etc. Right now I have small quantities of what I need & have to order often resulting in repeated shipping charges, which is not cost effective, if I was able to place bigger orders, I would not only save on shipping charges but get larger wholesale discounts making it possible for me to bring my products to people for less cost, lowering the final price for consumers ultimately, making it more affordable. People always tell me now how affordable my products are, I know sometimes people wonder about natural products, if they cost too much, consumers are not likely to try them.
I would also advertise in different papers, online, radio & try to get my name out there & wholesale to more stores while trying to find the perfect distributor for Irie Pet Products!
Some of my challenges will just take a little research, as does anything worth doing. I will need to figure out my target audience for the advertising & which means is the best method, social networks, radio, newspapers, chamber of commerce websites, email lists, press releases, etc.
Another challenge is the store owners & managers, having me call back or make trips to see them & then they don’t come in that day after I drive an hour to see them. With a distributor, I could spend more time formulating products & less time on the phone & in the car. This would give me more time for researching & formulating. So finding the perfect distributors will be my next challenge.