We recently connected with Jenna Bruxvoort and have shared our conversation below.

Jenna, 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 Jenna, and I’m the founder/owner of Loblola (although I always joke that my dogs are actually the ones running the show). I started making dog toys because I saw a gap in the market. Here I had a dog who loved being outside and playing with everything nature (pinecones, sticks, etc.), but I couldn’t find any dog toys that resonated with that love for nature. There are a lot of awesome dog toys out there that are super useful and functional, but that’s sort of where they end. They don’t connect with that natural, instinctual side of dogs. And frankly, they don’t look great sitting on the floor in your home either.

So Loblola (combination of loblolly & Lola, my dog’s name) makes true-to-nature dog toys to help reconnect dogs with nature and the way they instinctually play. Our toys are designed to be just like that item (pinecone, mushroom, etc.) is in nature — in color, size, and shape. They’re functional, durable, and they bring the simple beauty of the outdoors into the home.

Dogs & the outdoors are my two greatest loves. It wouldn’t make sense to me to have a company centered on both of those things without also working to take care of those things. Loblola is a member of 1% for the Planet, and we donate 4% of profits to organizations that help dogs in need. We’ve done campaigns for dogs in Ukraine when the war broke out, planting trees with One Tree Planted for Earth Day, and we donate regularly to the Soi Dog Foundation which fights the dog meat trade in Asia.

Okay – so how did you figure out the manufacturing part? Did you have prior experience?

We manufacture our dog toys here in the United States. I had never done anything related to manufacturing prior to starting Loblola. It was intimidating at the beginning, I dealt with imposter’s syndrome, and I also experienced sexism throughout the process. It’s easily forgotten that everyone starts at the beginning, everyone starts small, and anyone can start a business. It’s not the right answer, but my best advice is to expect it and to push through.

I started looking for a manufacturer on Maker’s Row. I wanted a manufacturer in the U.S. because it was all so new to me, I didn’t want to add any additional obstacles like a language barrier, time difference, a broker, or an entire ocean between. I started reaching out to manufacturers I thought might be a good fit. If I didn’t hear back, I reached out again. I tried to be the squeakiest wheel. Everyone I talked to, if it wasn’t a good fit, I asked them to give me a recommendation or referral of someone else they thought might be a good fit. That became a string of referrals that got me to my manufacturer now, and I feel so lucky to have found them.

Make sure your manufacturer is a good fit even if it takes longer. That is one of the most important relationships you will ever have.

Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?

I wouldn’t say I’m “unlearning” this, but “relearning” it — the biggest lesson I’ve had to relearn is that social media isn’t everything. It’s so easy to get caught up in the world of social media to the detriment of all else. For a long time my main marketing focus was social media, specifically Instagram. Instagram has been enormously successful for my brand awareness and brand reach, and it remains a big marketing bucket for me. However, putting that much focus on Instagram meant I was ignoring email marketing, SEO, and more standard content marketing.

Right now I’m working to round out that strategy while also being able to crossover content throughout.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://loblola.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lobloladogtoys/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lobloladogtoys

Image Credits
@endure_life @theprimitivepack @ashcaitphoto