Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Hollie Connell. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Hollie, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. One of the most important things we can do as business owners is ensure that our customers feel appreciated. What’s something you’ve done or seen a business owner do to help a customer feel valued?
As a way to say thank you to our valued couples for choosing Pup Plus One, now Plus The Pups, as a premier vendor on their wedding day, we decided to go above and beyond to make them feel special. Last holiday, we sent all of our 2022 couples a handmade ceramic ornament in the shape of a bone with their pups’ names hand-stamped onto them. It was so much fun making these custom ornaments for our couples, and even more fun getting photos from them during the holidays!
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
Plus The Pups offers wedding pet attending services throughout Colorado and beyond! What is a wedding pet attendant, you might ask? Your dog’s new BFF (and yours, too). A wedding pet attendant makes it possible for you to include your dog(s) in your wedding without having to worry about a thing!
In 2021, I was watching dogs on Rover (because my two rowdy farm dogs didn’t keep me busy enough ;)) and one of my clients asked me if, in addition to watching their dog for the weekend, I could bring him to their wedding! Not knowing what that would entail (other than me taking a half day at my day job to make it happen for them) I said OF COURSE. Little did I know, it was one of the most rewarding acts of service I have had the pleasure of providing.
A few months later, I decided to quit my job in pursuit of something that allowed me to combine my core nature (being of service to animals + humans) with my core skill set (tending to dogs). I could not stop thinking about how much fun I had helping my Rover clients with their sweet boy, Teddy, so I decided to start a wedding pet attendant business! Within a month, I had an LLC and a website, and had contacted every photographer, coordinator and venue within a 60 miles radius.
At Plus The Pups, we provide chauffeur services to and from the venue, escort the pups down the aisle, sit with them during the ceremony, assist with photos, walk them around cocktail hour and even assist with the signing of the marriage license! We offer three packages that make it stress-free and effortless for couples to celebrate the best day of their lives with their dog(s) by their side. Every one of our packages includes a free consultation call, event insurance, coordination with our couples’ other wedding vendors and chauffeur services. Additionally, we dress for every single occasion, whether it be cocktail attire or black tie. Our couples appreciate that we take the time to dress for the occasion and look like just another guest at their wedding, especially when we are walking their dogs down the aisle and mingling with guests at cocktail hour.
We pride ourselves on being accommodating to our clients’ wishes and attentive to their dogs’ needs. Plus The Pups celebrates all love and all dogs. I guess you could say, we don’t discriminate or dog-scriminate ;)
So much has happened in less than one year of being in business. We’ve expanded to Michigan (my home state), hired a team of associates in Colorado and already have 37 weddings booked for 2023! However, if I had to choose one thing to be most proud of, it would have to be taking those initial steps and jumping in head first. There have been many challenges and learning opportunities, and I am so grateful to be on this entrepreneurial journey. Doing what I love is so rewarding, but being able to extend that joy to my team of associates, our couples and their dogs is a feeling I cannot describe. Nothing makes me happier than providing our clients with memories of their dogs walking down the aisle and saying hi to all of their friends and family members.
Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?
In the process of trademarking Pup Plus One, I realized that another wedding pet attendant company had trademarked their tag line, which is not too dissimilar from “Pup Plus One.” Knowing that I could not trademark my company name that I am beyond in love with and so proud of, I made the devastating decision to rebrand. What started off as many tears and feelings of defeat turned into something that I am so incredibly excited about. As wedding pet attendant services begin popping up nationwide, there seems to be a hard emphasis on the “plus one.” Having to rebrand allowed me to take a step back and audit what it is that we truly want to focus on — the dogs! While we are still technically the dogs’ “plus one,” the emphasis is no longer on us — it is on helping couples include their dogs in as many celebrations as possible, thus, Plus The Pups.
Any fun sales or marketing stories?
Many of my friends started sending me a specific reel on Instagram of a dog going absolutely bananas during his parents’ ceremony. To paint the picture, imagine a dog sprinting down the aisle, jumping all over the couple and knocking over the microphone. To be honest, I had seen the video before and never once thought to use it as a marketing tactic until everyone told me it was the perfect opportunity to sell my services. So, I decided to remix the reel, not having a single clue what remixing was.
I put the words “POV: You didn’t hire a wedding pet attendant” over the original video and added a few photos of my most recent wedding with the words “POV: you hired a wedding pet attendant and your ceremony, photos and cocktail hour were a success!” over them. The dog was cool as a cucumber as I escorted her down the aisle and sat with her during the ceremony!
Little did I know, the original video was created by a wedding pet attendant in another state. I had no idea, as I remixed the reel from one of those random accounts like “kalesaladanimals” and felt horrible when I was contacted by the owner of the video. Fortunately, she was not offended by my remix and just kindly asked that I tag her as the original creator of the video.
Flash forward a few months, and my remix started blowing up! It has been played nearly 2 million times and shared almost 24,000 times! This one reel brought in dozens of inquiries from couples across the US and even a few in Mexico! Additionally, I started receiving emails and DM’s from individuals who wanted to be wedding pet attendants under our company name from New York to California and everywhere in between! The influx of inquiries is what initially led me to hire a team of associates in Colorado, because I began to get multiple inquiries on the same day.
This one reel went from a fun, silly idea to a portal to a whole new level of business.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.pupplusone.com
- Instagram: @pupplusone
- Facebook: facebook.com/pupplusone
Image Credits
ML Photo Film Studio JK Photography Maye.Be Take A Photo ALW Photography Leah Dee Photo Shea McGrath Photography