Your pet business, Your way

In this episode I'm talking about why this is the final episode of the Your Pet Business Your Way podcast and why I have decided to stop it for the foreseeable future.” I wanted to be really honest with you about why – not in a big, dramatic way or in a really sad way – just upfront and honest, because that's what this podcast has always been about.” I'll be sharing what goes into creating each ep...

When Shelina Duke started learning to train dogs back in 2020, it was just to help her own three barking poodles during lockdown. She was shielding at home with chronic asthma, and those three dogs needed some serious help with their behaviour. She didn't expect that teaching herself from a WordPress book while isolating would lead to building a thriving, global, poodle-only, force-free training b...

This is a behind-the-scenes look at what I've learned from running a dog-friendly holiday property for the last three years. Having a holiday cottage has always been a dream for me and getting the keys for Sunnyside Cottage in Robin Hood's Bay in April 2023 was so exciting. In this episode and blog post I talk about what has happened at Sunnyside over the last couple of years, the changes I've mad...

When Wendy Thomson Melling started her cat sitting business back in 2017, it was to earn a bit of extra cash caring for creatures she loved. She didn't expect that in just a few years she'd be able to ditch her old career as an accountant and set up a franchise business caring for cats across the country. My Three Cats first started in Warrington, Cheshire, and now Wendy has 350 clients across War...

Are you planning to launch a new product or service and want to get an idea of what to expect? This episode is a behind the scenes account of launching my Pet Business Content Planner for 2026. This is a product I created in 2025, so this year was the second year and I wanted to put this episode out to give an insight into the work involved. I'm sharing a 'warts and all' insight into my planner la...

Would you like to improve your understanding of neurodivergence? It might be in relation to your own experience, or around how you support your clients. Katrina Bayliss is The Neurodivergent Dog Coach and she supports pet professionals and dog people in improving the way they communicate with their dogs and one another. Katrina has the most fascinating background, from working in nightclubs to cou...

Did you come into the New Year feeling all fired up and filled with energy about your pet business and what was going to happen in 2026? Then, as we were flung into wars, political upheaval, economic uncertainty, did it feel like you skidded to a bit of a halt? If you’re nodding along, that’s ok, it’s totally normal to feel like this. There’s a lot going on in the world right now. And when you’re...

When Kerry Whitney split up with her boyfriend, lost her dad and had to move back home to her mum's, it led to her starting her dream business. It was back in 2015, and she'd just started an Instagram account for her Pug Frank, and started making him fun bow ties as a way of coping with her grief and the upheaval she'd experienced. Things grew, she started sending out her products to other dog own...

Confidence is an area that comes up as a challenge with the pet business owners I work with over and over again. When you're running a business on your own, you're already doing really brave things and taken the big risks. Yet, so often, things will make us question ourselves. I ran a workshop and a 'confidence experiment' in my membership to look at this, in particular asking people to ask themse...

Helen Wainwright is co-founder of the Dog Trainer School, a supportive online community for professional dog trainers that she runs alongside her partner Lee. Before working with dogs, Helen spent nearly a decade as a product tester and journalist at Good Housekeeping magazine, and later worked in community development. Going from glossy mags to working as a dog trainer meant taking a huge chance,...

Each year, Theo Paphitis hosts the Small Business Sunday winner’s event to celebrate small businesses and give them a boost. It’s a brilliantly inspiring day where Theo and a line-up of speakers share lessons, practical advice, and lots and lots of encouragement. You come away feeling enthused and supported, because you’re reminded why you started, and you’re in a room full of people who get it. T...

Rikki Sullivan is The Canine Copywriter - a specialist dog copywriter and marketing strategist who helps pet professionals put themselves out there without wrecking their nervous system. In this episode, we talk about confidence, visibility, and how to become a more confident writer because to grow your business, people need to be able to find you. Rikki went from working in the corporate world to...

Do you need to write a press release about your pet business? You're in the right place! This episode will cover everything you need to know when it comes to creating a press release for your pet business. But what I’m really keen to stress is that there is more to landing press coverage than writing a press release. What journalists want are stories, and by the end of this episode, you’ll have a...

Is getting some press coverage something you’d love to achieve for your pet business? You might see other people in the industry getting brilliant media coverage and wonder ‘how do they do it?’ Well, the good news is you don’t need a huge budget and a fancy PR company to appear in the media and make sure your business is seen. In this podcast episode I’m sharing five simple steps you can follow to...

Would you love to feel calm and in control of your content? Does it sometimes feel like you're constantly scrambling for ideas, or vanishing off social media when life gets busy? The good news is, you don’t need to chase trends or create from scratch every single day. You can have a plan that fits around you and your life. In this podcast episode, I'm sharing how repeatable content tasks - things...

Would you love to become the kind of person who plans? Are you fed up of feeling like you have so much going on that you can't keep up, and like the idea of a more calm way of working? The good news is that you don't need to have a complete personality overhaul to become more organised. It's something you can build on one step at a time. In this podcast episode you'll learn why planning is helpful...

Are you looking for a simple planning system that can cover your SEO, social media and email marketing? Maybe you'd love to create one piece of content that you can use for all three, and know that your business is showing up on Google and in the AI learning models. If so this podcast is for you. It covers how to create content to feed the demands of your website, social media and your newsletter...

Are you feeling ready to make a plan for 2026 but not sure where to start? Maybe you've got some big goals for the year ahead but it's the start of January and you're easing yourself in. This podcast and blog is about making a plan that fits round you actually want to work, and what’s right for your life, your energy and your goals. In the episode, I talk about the five things I believe you need t...

Do you choose a word for the year? Or are you thinking about yours for 2026?  Each year, I choose a word to guide how I want to feel and how I want to work and this year it’s Connection. In the past, it's been Calm and Space - two things I definitely needed during some pretty full-on seasons.  But this year, for 2026, it’s all about connection . In this post, I’m sharing why that word ma...

Are you thinking of putting up your pricess in 2026? If you're a pet business owner who struggles with charging fairly, overdelivers, and feels awkward about pricing - this episode is for you. I share what my current offers include, why my prices are increasing in 2026, and how the investment I’ve made in my own training and development is shaping the support I provide. You’ll also hear from two o...

When you run a business, it can feel like you’re constantly bombarded with new things you need to be doing. You wear plenty of hats anyway, from doing the actual work, to social media, your accounts, keeping on top of your orders and appointments. And on top of that, in the ever-changing online world, with so many ways you can get your business seen at your fingertips, there’s an endless barrage o...

Are you already feeling like you’ve got a plan for 2026 or looking for some inspiration? If it’s the latter then carry on reading because in this post and podcast episode, I’m sharing 12 lessons from the online planning day I ran recently. As well as the key areas covered in training, You’ll hear from the pet professionals who were there on the day and what works for them. Whether you're all set f...

Jade Statt is the co-founder of StreetVet, a charity supporting people affected by homelessness and their pets. Jade, her co-founder Sam Joseph, and their volunteers, support animals in 23 locations in the UK and there are 350 vets and nurses who are part of StreetVet. It all started when Jade, a vet, was on a night out in London in 2016, and saw a homeless man whose dog had a painful skin conditi...

Have you bought a planner because you want to feel more organised, calm and in control of your pet business in 2026? It’s normal to start the year with good intentions of how you’d like things to be. And with a plan that you can keep checking back in on and that prompts you to look at your progress, the goals you set for yourself for the year ahead can become a reality. Whether you’ve bought a cop...

Kate Hendry is the founder of Finbo Studio - a branding and design agency that helps pet businesses create a visual identity that feels just like them. In this episode, we talk all about how your brand is so much more than just a logo – and how to put yourself out there in a way that feels good. Kate is the brilliant brain behind the design of my planner, and she’s worked with loads of amazing pet...