We recently connected with Angela Rodriguez and have shared our conversation below.

Angela, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. We’d love to have you retell us the story behind how you came up with the idea for your business, I think our audience would really enjoy hearing the backstory.

In July of 2023 my husband and I rescued a dog from a very bad situation. “Vincent” the Catahoula became the newest member of our family. We were so excited to have a new pup in our home and we wanted to give him the best food and treats available. We started with a variety of store-bought food and treats, unfortunately Vinny had negative reactions to many of dog treat products. This triggered me to research dog’s digestive system and the benefits of different ingredients to incorporate into their diet.
I started purchasing all natural ingredients from local farms and stores in my area, and baking dog treats the in small batches at home. Vinny quickly showed signs of improvement (higher energy, less skin irritation, shinier coat, and regular sleep and bowel movements)
I was so excited about the results; I sent some of the dog treats to friends and family to try out. Their feedback was so positive and encouraging I decided to research the process to sell my all-natural dog treats.
After several months of completing all the regulatory requirements and obtaining applicable licensing from the state of Texas, “Vinny’s Munch & Play” was officially approved to operate in June of 2024.
The journey has been amazing. Since launching in June, my brand has taken off. I am now in hundreds of homes, multiple stores for retail, and offer custom dog treats for multiple Chick Fil A stores across the country.

Angela, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

My name is Angela Rodriguez, I live in Houston Texas with my husband Maurice and our Catahoula Vincent.

I am the CEO/Owner of a small veteran owned business that provides all natural dog treats to pup customers across the country.

We pride ourselves on using simple, all natural, locally sourced ingredients in our products. We never add sugars, salts, artificial colors/flavors, or preservatives. All of our dog biscuits and jerky are made in small batches and dehydrated for a minimum of 12hrs to extend the shelf life to up to 1 year.

One thing that sets us apart from other dog treat companies is we offer a “custom” dog biscuit option. Many of our customers add their logo and/or company name to the dog biscuit.

Are there any books, videos, essays or other resources that have significantly impacted your management and entrepreneurial thinking and philosophy?

When deciding to start my business and researching regulatory and licensing requirements, I came across the site www.aafco.org (Association of American Feed Control Officials). There was a section “For Startups” the article answered many of the questions I had as it pertained to labeling, ingredients, state fees and licensing. It was very informative and helped me through the process.

I have since posted the information on my platforms to share with other people who are interested in startup of pet food and/or pet treat companies.

What’s been the most effective strategy for growing your clientele?

Since I launched the business in June of 2024, my customer base has grown not only in size by also in type (household/wholesale / retail / custom).

I began marketing with word of mouth, and quickly realized I needed to do something else to get brand recognition out there. In the last year, I have grown my clientele by: social media push, being a vendor at markets and pops ups regularly, donating to shelters & fosters, and in-person marketing to local businesses.

At the beginning my goal was to provide a healthy all natural dog treats at a reasonable cost to families with dogs. My goal still remains the same, but on a larger scale. I now provide wholesale and custom orders to dog friendly businesses that hand out dog treats to their customers (hotels /groomers / veterinarian / restaurants/ etc..).

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.vinnysmunchandplay.com/
• Instagram: @vinnysmunchandplay
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/VinnysMunchandPlay/