We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Tara Sheheane. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Tara below.

Tara, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Let’s start on the operational side – do you spend more of your time/focus/energy on growing revenue or cutting costs?

For Pineapple Paw Prints, the most important piece for us to create a solid customer base by thinking outside the box and constantly creating new, creative product for our pup community. Yes, we would like to cut costs but for us the product quality and customer base is more important than cutting corners.

Tara, 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 Tara Sheheane. My daughter and I own a dog bandana business called Pineapple Paw Prints. We started our business right in the middle of the 2020 Covid pandemic. We got a mini Goldendoodle puppy just before the pandemic started. We started an Instagram for her @isabellasdoodlediaries and we noticed that the dog bandana market was booming. I had spent many years sewing cute clothes for my daughter when she was little, so creating dog bandanas seemed like a no brainer.

In the beginning of our business we actually dealt with some bully type behavior from other dog bandana businesses. So, we decided in those early days that our business would always represent kindness and working together with other brands to build each other up instead of tearing each other down. We believe that there is room out there for all the new businesses. So, this has sort of become our mission. We not only want to help our furry friends look great, but do it in a way that will make us proud. We are a southern business located in Charleston, SC. We really wanted the hospitality of the south to also be represented in the name of our brand. We chose Pineapple Paw Prints because in the south the pineapple is a symbol of welcome and hospitality.

Our product have evolved over the last two years. We started with just triangle bandanas using novelty fabric. Shortly after our business took off we changed our bandana design and started using soft macrame cord rope ties instead of the triangle fabric. People responded to this design with extreme positivity. The design creates a bandana that is a lot less bulky for the the hot climate we have here in the south. It also gives some more flexibility in sizing. Once we realized this was the design we wanted to run with, we started elaborating adding pom trim, hand made ruffles, adding embroidery and heat transfer designs. We have since added several types of bows, tutus and even our very own scarf design. Which people typically LOVE.

I would say the last two years have been full of ups and downs, but at the end of the day we learn from each new product and collection release. Having a small business is not easy but it is all about being flexible and learning from the mistakes along the way.

Any advice for growing your clientele? What’s been most effective for you?

As I mentioned before, we live in the Charleston, SC area. This area is known for the small business vending markets. Since we have such a temperate climate we typically have these markets year round. The community seems to respond to these markets in such a positive way. They really do support small in our area. While we are at these events we talk to everyone about our website. We pass out coupons and talk about the product. We have gained so many new customers and social media followers this way. In addition, we also have a team of brand ambassadors from all over the country and Puerto Rico. These are dogs who model and promote our brand in exchange for benefits with our company. These brand ambassadors are critical to the success of our business.

We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?

My daughter handles all the social media for our brand. She is a micro influencer on our dog account @isabellasdoodlediareis and recently for our puppy @finleysdoodlegram, so she is in the social media business all day. She is watching the trends and aware of the algorithm changes. This is critical for the success of our business on Social media. Socials are time consuming, so to have someone there who can make the content and be aware of the ever evolving world of social media is critical. We have also found success in having giveaways to create hype and promote the business.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.pineapplepawprints.com
• Instagram: @pineapplepawprints
• Facebook: @pineapplepawprints

Image Credits
First image Tara, Peyton and Bella- Tstarch Photography