Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Amanda Shaw. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Hi Amanda, thanks for joining us today. We’d love to start by getting your thoughts on what you are seeing as some the biggest trends emerging in your industry

More and more millennials are choosing to have dogs verses children. This has created a different outlook and what you do for your pets, now that they’re considered their children! I myself have 7 furry children that I want to spoil just as much. I see my clients wanting to recreate those over the top FUN child’s Pinterest parties. It’s something that has always been around, spoiling our dogs, but has become way more prevalent with social media and new trends. Dogs are more than ever a part of the family in such a different way!

Amanda, 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?

I’m Amanda, pet party planning extraordinaire and I’m ready to surprise YOU and your fur-baby with an unforgettable experience!

We’ve been pawtyin’ since 2018 – The Barkday Planner was created out of pure love for our very own fur-babies. We wanted to create over the top FUN celebrations showing our kiddos just how much they mean to us! What started as a celebratory hobby turned into a passion and eventually our very own small business after leaving scientific research to fully immerse myself in the pet industry.

To us, it’s not just a “paw-ty” it’s an experience! Our luxury packages create an experience that you’ll remember for years to come. They come with everything you’ll want and need to celebrate your pup on this special day! From the barkday cake, to the themed doggie bags, backdrop options, designed balloon pieces and unique tablescape set up, we do it ALL! Here at The Barkday Planner, we pride ourselves on taking your event from start to finish so you can fully enjoy the celebration. As we like to say “We Plan, You Pawty!” We’ll create a spectacular, one of a kind celebration for your fur-baby, bringing their barkday dreams to life!

And our promise to our clients: to provide excellent service and quality celebrations to ensure our clients always have an unforgettable, luxury experience with our team! We take the stress out of celebrating your precious fur-baby, allowing you to enjoy every second of this experience.

We aren’t your typical “party planner” we genuinely care about your celebration because we too know how special this day is! The time we get to spend with our fur-babies is limited, so we help you create memories you’ll cherish forever. Pets are our passion and we will go above and beyond to make each step of the planning process easy and special!

What else should we know about how you took your side hustle and scaled it up into what it is today?

My husband and I are pet parents and we wanted to celebrate our fur-babies just as any parent would! We started with a party for our Goldendoodle Teddy and my passion for pets and parties just grew even more. At the time I was pursuing my PhD in Neuroscience at UTMB. After throwing Teddy’s party, I couldn’t stop thinking about it. The feeling it gave me was unreal, nothing I had ever felt before! A few weeks later I made a logo and created The Barkday Planner! Knowing science wasn’t my passion I decided to leave this chapter of my life and jump head first into the pet industry. As I continued to grow TBP I managed a doggie daycare in Houston. From here my love, knowledge and passion continued to grow for pets. If it wasn’t for my career in the pet industry, I wouldn’t be where I am today with my very own small business. It taught me a lot of things about dogs, pack play and how to manage everything in between. In August of 2022 I took a leap of faith and made TBP my full time job!

Let’s move on to buying businesses – can you talk to us about your experience with business acquisitions?

In the fall of 2022 I purchased Buster’s Party Shop – a pet party hat and accessory online shop! It’s quite a funny story of how this acquisition occurred, but it was one of the best business decisions I’ve ever made. Before purchasing, Buster’s Party Shop was a vendor of mine. I created a great relationship with the previous owner and when we found out they were closing the shop, we inquired about the remaining inventory of hats. After chatting on the phone, the previous owner asked “Random question, but would you be interested in taking over Buster’s?” It was something that never occurred to either of us, but it just felt right! It’s the perfect extension of our “pawty brand” allowing us to continue to grown and reach a larger audience of pet parents. From there we began the acquisition process, with training calls, shipment of inventory and lots of coaching. It was a pretty smooth process until I became very ill. My wonderful husband coordinated with the previous owner to fly to Idaho and get the remaining inventory and meet the wonderful person behind creating this fun, party brand. It was a wonderful experience, one I would definitely recommend to others looking to continue and expand their brand.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.thebarkdayplanner.com
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/thebarkdayplanner?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=
• Facebook: @thebarkdayplanner

Image Credits
Pawfect Pawtraits, Smooches & Pooches Photography