We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Laura Jo a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Laura, thanks for joining us today. Let’s start with the story of your mission. What should we know?

I Love ALL dogs. The small, medium & big ones, ALL breeds ! Even the cats !
And I believe They should have access to fashion equally.
I provide one of the best quality fabric alongside very unique designs on the market.
Barth & Barks IS the PAWfect balance between FANCY & CASUAL style for them to wear everyday.
That is why my mission is to LOVE your pets as much as you do.
To STYLE them with MODERN, TRENDY, ECO-FRIENDLY accessories. And to make You & Them, HAPPY.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

My name is Laura DEL FALCO and I was born and raised in South of France where I spent 24 years of life.

I moved to San Antonio, Texas January 24th, 2015 and worked at Seaworld as a synchronized swimmer performer for the AZUL Show. I fell in love with the state, the culture and its people pretty quickly!

After two amazing years and many shows later, I found myself obtaining my green card and becoming a nanny for a wonderful family with three little boys.

Fast forward October 2019 on a Thursday I found myself taking care of a dog in a critical situation wondering just four houses down my street.
This is where the story of my business truly started… After many months of fostering and caring for this new furry friend I decided that I was gonna be his forever family, and as the love grew so was my “want” to work from home and be with my doggy Chewy all the time!

One day, I ordered online a set to match with my dog (bandana+headband) and surely I was quite disappointed in the quality of what I had spent my money into. At that moment I thought “why would I not make something myself for my dog and even for more pets ?!
Summer 2020 is when my business started to take shape and would be launched September 7th, 2020. From there I have not stopped growing, slowly but surely I have experienced the love and support of my family, friends, customers, vendors friends etc.
I managed my nanny job and my business both until May 31st and June 1st 2021 was the beginning of my full-time journey of being Barth & Barks business owner!
I surely owe this success to hard work and dedication but most of all to all of those who believe in me!

I would say my strong suit is that I always try my best to stay true to myself. I do my best not to copy design ideas or themed accessories from others of the industry and that would be my best advice for anyone in this industry as well. What sets you apart is your unique taste and vision of pet fashion & practicality. I do proud myself into providing curated goods without leaving the quality out of it and customer service and satisfaction is key for me. Honesty & transparency is surely another element of being successful. People want to know WHO is behind the scene and make sure theirs pets are taking care throughout theirs purchases.
My shop started with the TIE ON Bandanas and Bow ties, but I now have also walking sets (collars/leashes/poop bag holders/harnesses), poop loops, metal ID with fun designs, tote bags, tees, and looking forward to add more to the boutique !

What’s been the best source of new clients for you?

Doing local events, farmers markets and festivals. There is something special in meeting people in person, getting to know a piece of their story and sharing mine, meeting theirs pets too ! Petting all the dogs is for sure one of perks on this industry. Just experiencing human connection and being able to bring a smile on the face of dogs and theirs owner is always my goal. It makes me the happiest.

Can you talk to us about how your funded your business?

Owning my own business has always been on my heart. Therefore when I decided it was time “to jump” and turn my dream to reality, I already had a little bit of money set aside for it. I love to say every penny counts ahah but I did invest and took reasonable financial risks to help it start. I would say I planned my finances before even knowing exactly what my journey would be so this was quite helpful.
Also sometimes it doesn’t have to take a lot of money for an idea to become a successful story !

Contact Info:

• Website: www.barthandbarks.com
• Instagram: @barthandbarks
• Facebook: @Barth and Barks