Waw things have changed since purchasing Fair Dinkum Dog Coats in 2007! I purchased the business from a friend who offered to teach me how to run every aspect of the business, including teaching me to sew. Yes that's right, I didn't know how to sew! At 19 I was willing to give anything a go and soon after age 20 purchased a pet shop that I was supplying with coats with my mother.
2012 we sold the pet shop as my husband Courtney and I were due to have our first child Monique. Becoming a mother also lead me to downsize Fair Dinkum Dog Coats into a purely retail business. I decided that I wanted to work less hours and make a decent wage which wholesale was not providing.
What a rewarding decision this turned out to be! From my experience in the pet shop I realized that there was a huge demand for custom order coats to fit any breed of dog. So instead of slaving away supplying the 30 Australian pet shops I then became the go too girl for custom coats to fit breeds such as greyhounds, whippets etc.
2013 became the year of the greyhound and whippets for me, but I loved every moment of it. Especially the emails of thanks as these customers were so happy to finally have their beloved pets warm in a fitted coat. This was also the year of the international sales with coats being posted to Germany, New Zealand and England.
2014 I worked right up until the birth of our beautiful second child Phoebe who arrived in May and we have been enjoying the warmer weather as a family down at Torquay.
2015 I'm back all guns blazing! At this point in time we will be attending Glen Eira Pet Expo and Knox Pets in the park. The blog will be updated soon with all events that we will be attending.
So the plan for 2015 is to be an amazing wife, mother of two and dog coat machinist extraordinaire.
Wish me luck!
Elise
www.fairdinkumdogs.com.au
