We recently connected with Sam A. & Courtney W. and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Sam A. & Courtney W., thanks for joining us today. Let’s kick things off with your mission – what is it and what’s the story behind why it’s your mission?
In 2020, we began the year by attending puppy socialization and training classes with Harrison. We absolutely loved attending and knew everyone by their pup’s names (“so-and-so’s mom”)! Unfortunately, I’m sure you can guess what happened next – COVID-19. The classes quickly came to an end and we found ourselves searching for that sense of community online. Fortunately, we found the dog Instagram community and quickly fell in love. It reminded us of the importance of creating memories with our dogs, even when you can’t leave the house. We discovered the love for dog bandanas and other fashion accessories. Wayward Paws and our mission grew from there, inspired by our dog friends and the unforgettable memories we were all creating.
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers
We are Sam and Courtney, founders of Wayward Paws! We began Wayward Paws after becoming a part of the dog community on Instagram. We are an LGBTQ-run pet and human supply small business that initially began in our apartment in Phoenix, Arizona. Our story began with selling dog and cat bandanas on Etsy and has evolved into what you see today. Everything we sell is either handmade by us or sourced from other small businesses around the U.S. and world. Our favorite products are what we affectionately call “snoods.” We define a “snood” as an infinity scarf for your dog or cat. The snoods were created out of a need for an alternative to bandanas which drag, fall off, or get chewed by pets. Snoods slip right over your pet’s head, rests on their neck, and are generally more difficult to chew or fall off. On our website, you will also find bandanas, matching human and pet scarf/snood sets, gift ideas, and other products for both pets and humans.
We’re most proud of the community we have created – which we call our WPCO family. Everyone helps each other and is a part of something special. We love hearing about the things happening in their lives and provide support for the good and bad. We also strive for inclusivity and creating space for anyone that wants to be a part of our family. Some of the steps we take toward being inclusive are our sizes (for both pets and humans), diverse pet and human models, aiming for affordable pricing, and how we engage with others positively. Our followers, customers, and models range from homebodies to rugged adventurers to anyone in between. We love them all!
Have you ever had to pivot?
Throughout our Wayward journey, we have had to pivot several times but there is one time that stands out the most. Earlier this year, we experienced incredible burnout and just, well, shut down. It was completely unexpected and we felt a lot of guilt and shame about our radio silence. We didn’t have the capacity to even confront the issue and let our community know what was going on – we just silently disappeared from our online presence. After several months, we figured out we needed to pivot. Our pivot included re-evaluating our mission and purpose. Why were we even doing this? What did we want out of it? And most importantly, how could we align the why and the what with the how. How could we modify our approach to be more sustainable for us as business owners? We recently came back after this re-evaluation and, while the disappearance did hurt our business, we were welcomed back with so much love and support from the community we’ve built. Throughout this process, we’ve been learning more about ourselves and our limits when it comes to our business, including how to prevent another total disappearance. We can’t keep up in the way some other businesses can, whether it be sales or social media. But that’s okay. We’re being true to us. We’re here to thrive in the ways that work for us and the WPCO family.
We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?
Oooh boy, building a social media audience is a tough one. Our audience began with family and friends, as I’m sure most do. We created an Instagram and started posting when we launched on Etsy. We had zero followers. We put ourselves out there by following different pet accounts, engaging with their posts, and just having fun with it! We maintain our current audience through similar methods. If you’re just starting out, we find that many people appreciate authenticity – be who you are! Generally speaking, if they vibe with you and what you’re putting out there, they’ll join you. It does take an active effort, especially with all the changes in algorithms and preferences for content. For example, now we actively think about what moments of our day can be captured to later create a post or video while still remaining authentic to who we are.
Contact Info:
- Website: waywardpawsco.com
- Instagram: instragram.com/waywardpawsco
- Facebook: facebook.com/waywardpawsco