From Wedding Bells to SuperZoo: How August Became the Wildest Month of Our Lives

Soooo…back in August we unexpectedly ended up at SuperZoo, the biggest pet-industry trade show in the U.S. Here’s the wild part: we applied on a whim to win a free booth with GoodNow/StartUpCPG, and on August 2 (our literal wedding day) we found out we won. I got the email right before sitting down for makeup, and honestly I couldn’t think about anything else. Yes, it was my wedding day and I loved every single moment—but come on, that news was the ultimate cherry on top.

We found out on August 2, and the show started on August 13 (with set-up on August 12). We decided to leave on Saturday, August 9 to break up the drive and sneak in a little early Vegas fun. After our mini-moon (August 4–6), that left us just two days to prep for a major trade show. Somehow, we made it happen. It was hectic on paper, but Brian and I work so well together that it never felt chaotic.

Inside SuperZoo: A Business Game-Changer 

SuperZoo was unreal. Life-changing. We finally met brands, big and small, that we’d only ever seen on store shelves or online. We even mingled with CEOs of household-name brands you see in Petco and Target. To think that within our first year in business these leaders now know who we are is mind-blowing. Some even offered guidance and support to help us scale.

I’ll admit I was surprised by how kind and collaborative everyone was. The pet industry has a reputation for being competitive and cutthroat, but what I learned is that there’s room for all of us to grow, even though competition is still very real.

Finding My People: The Elevate Community

Right before SuperZoo, I joined Elevate, a community that empowers minority founders in the pet industry. This group is pure gold. Before Elevate, it was just Brian and me bouncing ideas back and forth, feeling like we were figuring it all out alone. Now, I have a built-in advisory circle of 20+ Black-owned brands to lean on for advice and encouragement.

Many of those founders were at SuperZoo, including Ava’s Pet Palace, which shared our booth. Meeting them and seeing their family-led operation in action was so inspiring. It got me dreaming about building a legacy that future kids might one day want to carry on.

On Wednesday night, about 30 of us gathered for an Elevate dinner. We laughed, traded insights, and also had an honest conversation about representation. Black-owned pet brands make up far less than 1% of the industry, and no one in the room had a 20-year-old company, let alone a century-old one. It hit me that we’re literally at the beginning of Black founders in this space. That’s both exciting and sobering. We calculated at least 10 more Black-owned brands in the group who couldn’t make it but still, such a small fraction of the market.

I also want to point out that Hispanic-owned brands face the same uphill climb. As a Black/Latina founder, I’m acutely aware of how pioneering these early years are. My hope is that more minority-owned pet businesses will rise and thrive.

Key Takeaways and Next Steps

My biggest takeaway from SuperZoo was the power of relationships and education. The conversations, the connections, and the mentorship we gained have already paid off, we’ve landed four more stores since the show, with more in the works.

Looking ahead, we’re planning to return to SuperZoo next year and to exhibit at other major trade shows like Global Pet Expo.

If you haven’t already, check out our Instagram (@shopspoiledpets) to watch the behind-the-scenes vlogs from that week! They capture all the hustle, the Vegas energy, and those pinch-me moments from SuperZoo.