01/11/2019
PLEASE READ!! 🐶❤️🐾
When Sam and I started Salty Paws Treats, we wanted to make a treat that our very sensitive dog could enjoy that wouldn’t affect her allergies. After much testing and tweaking of our recipe, we did just that.
Then, we thought other dogs could probably benefit from and enjoy this same treat. Turns out, we were right. We sold the product at craft fairs across North Carolina where we were met with great enthusiasm. So, we added more flavors and started pitching our product to retailers. Turns out, it was a perfect fit because so many dogs needed a simple, all-natural treat without all the weird fillers.
Fast forward a few months and we've moved into our friend's commercial kitchen and we began enlisting our friends and family to help us hand-make treats 5 nights a week for zero pay. That's when we realized we had unleashed a beast and we couldn't sustain making Salty Paws this way for long. We had no life as we both worked jobs during the day and then Salty Paws at night.
So, we sought out a partner to produce our treats with the same level of care that we did. After talking to over 50 bakeries across the country and after several test bakes which consisted of 9 months of work, we finally found one bakery that met our standards of quality and care. Then we were hit with the devastating news: we couldn't afford their pricing. Our treat's ingredients were too good and the labor was too intensive to find a price that would work without raising our prices too much.
With that said, we are closing down Salty Paws effective immediately. We are so sad to shut it down, but also hopeful because we accomplished what we originally set out to do -- give our little puppy, Mia, a treat she could enjoy without allergy problems. We're happy we met so many wonderful dogs and their humans along the way. Thank you each for supporting us -- it's been one of the highlights of our young marriage.
Warmly,
Lauren, Sam & Mia 🐾
