We were lucky to catch up with Allison Fogarty recently and have shared our conversation below.

Allison, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Alright, so you had your idea and then what happened? Can you walk us through the story of how you went from just an idea to executing on the idea

As a person with a disability (Down syndrome) I knew what my dream was, but I needed some sidekicks beside me to make it all happen. Luckily, I have wonderful parents and friends who helped me get started and also continue to assist me eight years later.

I decided that I wanted to create and cook food when I was 11 years old. I had just been told that I had to stop eating and drinking by mouth for my physical safety. I had surgery to place a feeding tube into my stomach. That was a very bad time in my life, but after two years and several surgeries, I could eat and drink again. During those two years I became obsessed with food – I watched food channels and found my hero Rachael Ray.

When I graduated high school I still breathed through a tracheostomy tube in my neck. My health was not good and I was told I was unemployable. Well, when my mom retired from teaching to take care of her parents, the two of us started making and delivering about 30 lunches, once a week, for her teaching friends. We called that “business” Lunch Break. I learned how to follow a recipe and look up recipes online. I practiced cooking skills and also office skills. When my grandparents passed away, we moved to Florida to take care of my little nephew and infant niece. I still wanted to cook!! My mom found out about the Down Syndrome Association of Central Florida’s first Entrepreneur Academy. And that is when Doggy Delights by Allison was born!

Allison, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

When I decided to make dog treats, I did research online to find out healthy ingredients. I developed my first recipes, but I had to find some dogs to “test” them on. I have never had a dog and actually I was a little scared of them. I found some great friends in my neighborhood who had dogs and also volunteered at a dog rescue. The dogs all loved my treats! After I had developed 4 flavors I started selling treats once a week at the farmers market. Dogs loved my booth and that is where I learned to love dogs. Even dogs that didn’t want treats would visit my booth for pets! My favorite dog friend was a farm dog who didn’t eat treats. His name was Moose, but I renamed him Chocolate Mousse!

When I had to go to the hospital for pneumonia, I was watching Rachael Ray (of course). My mom stayed at the hospital with me. During the break, there was a message that asked people to send in their stories for a chance to be on the show. I got so excited and told my mom to email them. A year later, after we forgot all about that, Rachael Ray’s team called us up and wanted to FaceTime with us on the show. We got so many orders!! But we were not prepared for that. Then we were asked to fly to New York to appear on the show in person. I got to make dog treats with my hero, Rachael Ray!!! We were sold out again, even though we thought we were prepared.

Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?

My mom is in charge of my social media accounts, and when I was part of a cohort of businesses run for or with a person with a disability, our homework was to get on TikTok. My mom was not excited about that because it was hard enough to keep up with the other accounts. TikTok became our favorite, though, and I have almost 7,000 followers. I tell a joke of the day and show what I am doing – making treats, filling orders, and selling treats at some event. Sometimes I also share personal stories, like when I was featured in a book (Down Syndrome Out Loud by Melissa Hart) and when I got engaged to my fiance.

My advice is don’t try to do it all at first. Pick an account that works for you and focus on that. You can always add more later. Just be you and engage with your followers.

Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?

It is very important to me to make treats that dogs love but they also have to be healthy. I don’t add any salt, sugar, preservatives, fillers etc. When I first started my business I only sold frozen treats. I didn’t know how to preserve them so they kept their nutritious qualities. When customers started to request that I ship my treats, we started doing research. My mom email many companies and asked about shelf life and food preservation. We learned everything we could about freeze drying and found out that freeze drying is better than dehydration. Freeze drying preserves the treats without the heat needed for dehydration. First we bought a small freeze dryer, and then 2 large ones. Customers want the best for their dogs, and they like my ingredients and that they are freeze dried.

My advice is to build your business with the best quality products or services you can. People want a business they can count on.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.DOGGYDELIGHTSBYALLISON.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/DOGGY_DELIGHTSBYALLISON
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DOGGYDELIGHTSBYALLISON
• Linkedin: https://linkedin.com/in/allison-fogarty-2b9a38175
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCaJ0Ss6DegS2162wPJFO2Tg
• Other: TikTok: tiktok.com/@doggydelightsbyallison