Small Business Stories - Dog Speak Cards

Alex Fees talks with Connie Stubbs about her greeting card company, Dog Speak Cards, at the 2008 Pet Expo convention in Baltimore.

Alex Fees: I’m Alex Fees for Small Business Television, SBTV.com. We are on location in Baltimore at the 2009 Pet Industry Spring trade show. It is brought to you by H. H. Backer Associates, publishers of Pet Age magazine. Connie Stubs this is with the she is the owner of the company called Dog Speak. This is greeting cards for pets. Connie what? Connie Stubbs: It’s greeting cards and gifts for the dog lover. Alex Fees: For the pet owner? Connie Stubbs: Yes. Alex Fees: About a pet theme? Connie Stubbs: Yes the concept of dog speak is that the card is actually written by the dog from the dog. So it has an unusual spin to it. Alex Fees: I see. So its greeting cards from pets to pets via— Connie Stubbs: Or to their owner. Alex Fees: Or to their owner. Connie Stubbs: Yes. Alex Fees: Show me an example. Connie Stubbs: Let’s say that you have a dog and your significant other is sending you a card and they’re sending the card from the dog. So its a little sloppiness and a little misspelled but it’s actually by and written by the dog and a special card— Alex Fees: Okay so let’s talk about this one first. Connie Stubbs: Okay. Alex Fees: For your birthday I’m at your fetching call that’s very fun. Dog humor. Connie Stubbs: Yes dog humor very simplistic. A special cardboard requires a special envelope. We are a full caption card line and what that means is that it’s birthday, get well, thinking of you, pet sitter, new puppy, pet bereavement, we really focus on a lot of captions that other companies aren’t focusing in on. Pet bereavement is a very important category where friends of people who loose their pet are really looking for a way to comfort and express that lost and so we do a very nice tasteful comforting job of offering pets and sympathy cards. Alex Fees: Can we talk to me about two things, talk to me about the photography or art work on the front where is that come from and what about the message within who comes up with this stuff? Connie Stubbs: I created the dogs big concept about four years ago 4½ years ago that I wanted to write a card from my dog because I couldn’t find the card from my dog and I also really wanted to bring comfort to those people in any situation and so I created all of the concepts, the set up shots and then I actually hire the local photographer and we went out and we photograph the animals on sight. What we did was we none of the cards are manipulated and none of the animals are doing anything that animals wouldn’t be doing. So they’re in there natural environment. Alex Fees: Show me another example. Connie Stubbs: I think another example would be, be patient, the dog can actually do this. He balances our nose and as good things come to those who wait. Alex Fees: So again like the message inside good thing is come to those who wait that’s your idea. You wrote that? Connie Stubbs: Yes. Alex Fees: That’s good. Connie Stubbs: Well thank you, thank you it’s one of our better selling parts. Pet sitter is an excellent selling caption for us. So here we have a car where the dogs is actually done this work on the floor for his pet sitter and it says thank you for taking such good care of me. And then I’ve done creative things, again the pet sympathy cards very sweet sentiments meant to bring comfort. Dogs coming to our lives leave paw prints on our hearts and we have forever changed. Alex Fees: So you found a true market there for people who have lost their pets. Connie Stubbs: Absolutely. Alex Fees: Connie are you in retail stores anywhere. Connie Stubbs: I am, I am across the country we have sales rep just to meeting our products primarily just a whole sale to retail business. Alex Fees: So where can people go to find out more information or to purchase some of your cards. Connie Stubbs: They can go to dogspeakcards.com. Alex Fees: dogspeakcards.com. Connie Stubbs: Yes. Alex Fees: Thank you very much. Connie Stubbs: Thank you. Good to meet you.