Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in pet care but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Craig Maggio, owner of Friendly Pets, located in Lee, NH, USA.
What's your business, and who are your customers?
Friendly Pets is a locally owned and operated independent Pet Retail chain located in New Hampshire. We are a full line pet store carrying a wide variety of Pet food and supplies as well as live animals and aquatics. We all have services such as Self Serve Dogwash, grooming (Bedford location only), small animal boarding, and a 20,000 sq/ft outdoor dog park (lee location only)
Tell us about yourself
From a young age, I was always interested in starting my own business. The concept of creating something from nothing greatly appealed to me. I love working with my team and constantly meeting the challenges they face in businesses on a daily basis.
What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?
The creation of the business itself is one of my favorite constructs to look back on. The process of bringing a business to life and creating an entity that can sustain itself and grow is truly rewarding.
What's one of the hardest things that come with being a business owner?
There are many challenges that we have had to overcome in the last ten years, but navigating the pandemic is surely one of the toughest challenges we have faced.
What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?
During the conceptual phase, many new entrepreneurs get too focused on why they think their business will succeed and do not spend nearly enough time on why it won't. It's easy to be optimistic about an idea that you want to bring to life, but sometimes that optimism blinds us to the factors that could cause the business to struggle. As part of the entrepreneurship process, I would advise new business owners to try and find all the reasons their business won't work, then create solutions to those problems. This process can really help you determine the viability of your idea.
Where can people find you and your business?
Website: https://friendlypets.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/friendlypetsstore
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/friendlypetsnh/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/FriendlyPetsNH
If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solopreneur that you'd like to share, then email community@subkit.com; we'd love to feature your journey on these pages.
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