July 5, 2019
Modern Dog Emporium
Canine Café Chewys is a wholesale product for cafes, pooch parlours, coffee vans, breweries and other dog-friendly venues
We caught up with founder, Jaclyn Tindale, to discuss the inspiration behind her company Modern Dog Emporium, which sells the popular Canine Café Chewys.
Jaclyn explains her vision behind the business…
“The concept came about a few years ago when my partner and I frequented dog-friendly cafes. I thought it would be awesome for pooches to have their own treats and after extensive research and development, I launched Canine Café Chewys TM.
“It was a very exciting time as I left my role of 13 years working in accounting to follow a long-held dream to provide speciality goods for dogs. The concept has really taken off and making the choice to follow my passion has proven to be one of the best decisions I’ve ever made.
What’s in a name?
As the name suggests, Modern Dog Emporium is a boutique online store that offers contemporary, healthy and useful dog products. Today’s dog owners are conscious about making wholesome choices for their pooches and I wanted a name that represents this. We are currently focused on our wholesale product but our plan is to bring specialised products to the canine community directly.
What are the health benefits?
These treats are a nourishing alternative to giving your dog bacon or other fatty scraps. Part of my mission is to share with the canine community, healthy food choices and other modern-day products for dogs. For instance, it isn’t widely known that bacon is unhealthy for a dog’s digestive system and can cause pancreatitis.
Canine Café Chewy’s are gluten-free and also vegan, so they’re suitable for dogs with allergies. Being a dental stick, these tasty treats are good for dogs’ teeth and boosted with vitamins, minerals and anti-oxidants, ticking all the boxes.
What are some of the best ‘dog-friendly ‘café’s you have visited?
There are so many amazing dog-friendly café’s and venues, here’s just a few…
NSW
- The Sandy Bear, in Clontarf. This location is a dog’s paradise where they can walk, play and swim then drop in at The Sandy Bear located at Clontarf Marina. This establishment has a beautiful alfresco setting where woofers can ‘live the high life’.
- Gusto on the Beach, in South Curl Curl. There’s a lovely walkway along the oceanfront that spans from Freshwater beach to North Curl Curl and Gusto is situated right in the middle. It’s super dog-friendly and has eat-in or take away options. When the sun isn’t shining and it’s a little chilly, Gusto has cosy dog blankets for your woofers to stay warm. There’s also an off-leash exercise area nearby.
- Café Aqua in Coffs Harbour is situated in a great location with dog-friendly parks and the beach is only a “ball’s throw” away.
QLD
- At Bare Food Café in Paradise Point, the woofers have access to the entire café area. There’s plenty of love for dogs and their pet parents “served up” here.
- Another great spot in Queensland is Sassafras of Paddington in Brisbane, where there’s a great courtyard and an array of doggie treats on the menu including doggie ice cream. They are also licensed if you feel like a vino while your dog has a treat.
VIC
- Fitzrovia in St Kilda is straight across from a dog park and has an extensive menu for dogs as well. These guys are hugely dog friendly and even have special events like doggie degustation sittings!
- Power Plant Café at Templestowe has a huge alfresco area for woofers plus delicious treats and boasts a special Instagram account for their pooch patrons. All plant based with delicious, nutritional food for the pet parent.
The cafés I mentioned are just a handful of venues that we retail. Our entire list can be found on the website.
What has the response been to your products so far?
The response has been overwhelming which is very gratifying and inspires me to continue taking the product Australia-wide and eventually internationally.
We are currently available at locations in New South Wales, Queensland and Victoria. It’s really wonderful to see that so many dog-friendly cafés and venues are putting out the welcome mat for the product.
What advice do you give other pet start-ups?
While it might sound like a cliche it really is about balance so don’t forget to take time out. With any business start-up, there will always be a long list of things to do and you can sometimes find yourself working both day and night so remember to regulate this.
I remind myself to be organised. I try to map out my day and stick to a plan as best as possible, take a lunch break and clock off at a reasonable time. It’s always good to put your phone on mute otherwise it will be calling to you from across the room!
As far as a specific pet business tip… Do extensive research on pet products to ensure great quality and safety and of course, always stick with your values and ethics.
The pet industry has an awesome community of fellow animal lovers, which makes attending doggie events and getting to know the community so enjoyable.
HIGH PAWS FOR BEING DOG FRIENDLY!
