PAWTALKS WITH PEZZY PETS

Brand Interview with Founder & CEO Mike Mitchell

What was the inspiration behind Pezzy Pet's?

I came up with the idea for Pezzy Pets while working as a fisheries researcher in Mexico where I came across the invasive "devil fish" or armored catfish. I started working with local communities to promote the consumption of the fish and build an economy around it. After studying the push for more sustainable proteins in pet food (and all foods) as well as the growing demand for clean label products, I decided to create pet treats out of the devil fish and other invasive fish as a way to craft highly nutritious snacks for pets while helping restore the native ecosystem and support small-scale fisheries. 

How does your brand differ from other industry brands in the same category? What gives you the competitive edge?

We're only use wild-caught invasive proteins, making us more sustainable than most. Additionally, we own our supply chain, meaning we work directly with fishers across the US, Mexico and Central America to harvest and process these invasive species into pet treats. 

Describe the ingredients you look for in the products you use.

Invasive species. We seek to tackle environmental problems that people haven't figured out yet - the invasive species that are truly wreaking havoc on the environment and causing headaches for fishers and the economies that depend on these ecosystems. 

Walk us through your development process — from ideation to the product we see on the shelf.

We spent a ton of time figuring out the best way to process this unique fish and cut through its tough skin or exoskeleton to fillet it efficiently. We worked with a local chef to develop recipes like burgers and meatballs and even made jerky in her dehydrator. The jerky experiments paved the way for our pet treat experiments. I started off by buying a bunch of single ingredient treats from a local pet store and trying them myself! I figured we could do the same with our fish and that's when we started testing our single ingredient devil fish strips. 

"We seek to tackle environmental problems that people haven't figured out yet - the invasive species that are truly wreaking havoc on the environment and causing headaches for fishers and the economies that depend on these ecosystems." 

What are some things you take into consideration during the creation of new products?

When we look into new sources for our invasive species, we consider various factors like volume of capture, processing infrastructure and nutritional benefits. 

Other than Pezzy Pet's, what is something you are passionate about?

I love hiking and camping as well as watching baseball! 

What is one major lesson you learned about running a business?

Perseverance is the name of the game. Running a business is such an emotional rollercoaster that you have to learn to not get too high nor too low. 

What are some challenges you have overcome with Pezzy Pets?

All sorts of them! From regulatory hurdles to shipping delays to packaging.

What would you say is your most effective marketing channel?

Our most effective marketing channel has been pop-up markets and dog events where we get to interact with customers, gather feedback and take time to fully explain the "why" behind our products. It's slowly shifting to IG and TikTok. 

"Running a business is such an emotional rollercoaster that you have to learn to not get too high nor too low."

Give us the backstory of your brand’s name.

We wanted to pay homage to our roots and work in Mexico - "pez" means fish in Spanish and we just toyed with it to come up with Pezzy. 

What would you like to see for Pezzy Pet's future?

I'd love to see us scale into hundreds of indie pet stores, but I think our main focus is growing our private label and ingredient supply side of the business. I'd love to see our fish being used in products by huge pet companies with national distribution. 

What do you think is the most prominent concern in the pet industry?

I think there's many valid concerns in the pet industry but for me, the main issue is the sustainability and quality of the proteins we're feeding our pets. Factory-farmed meats are not just bad for the environment but bad for us and our pets as well. And then specifically in the seafood space, there's many species that are unsustainably harvested or at risk of being overexploited. We're trying to change that by providing a protein source that's great for both pets and the environment.