What inspired you and the team to start Paw Affaire and create sustainable pet accessories?

For me, you know, it was love for my dog or love for dogs or animals to start with, coupled with creating a positive impact in the society that led to starting Paw Affaire. I also wanted to do something unique for them and give back to society. So that’s where Paw Affaire originated post COVID.

How does the brand incorporate eco-friendly practices into its products and operations? 

So I think we are very focussed on creating positive standards, right from the sourcing of our products to the final execution, we are very fair and transparent in incorporating eco-friendly practices. Our fabrics are sourced from a company which has a global textile organic standard of goods. We are also very sure of our packaging as we are using either recycled or hand-made paper packaging. 

It’s a conscious effort from day one that’s been continued. It’s a very conscious effort because it’s a global thing now for everyone to follow sustainability and eco-friendliness because of the climate changes and other things. So keeping that in mind, when it’s done in every sector, why do we leave the pet sector? 

Definitely we should be conscious as the sector is also very important. It’s a growing sector and we will eventually need to move to sustainability. Right now, all the products which are available are from China, that are either plastic or nylon. Apart from being harmful to the dog, it’s not good for the planet also. So we wanted to create something where we as an industry also are doing something that is good for the planet.

How does Paw Affaire support women’s empowerment as it seems to be a cause very close to your heart?

The thought process behind this was a second chance. Every woman needs a second chance after getting married, having kids to get back to work and they need that flexibility and that’s when we set up our small little factory in Pondicherry. 

We have employed 80-90% of women, especially mothers working for us. So to ensure flexibility, we ensure that in case the kids need to come from school and you know, sit in the factory, we’ve got arrangements for that. Right from providing the flexibility in working, to our hiring practices, to understanding their needs, that’s how we put things to practise.

How does the brand maintain ethical practices, responsible sourcing and a transparent work environment? 

So ethical sourcing, right from when the company was set up, it’s completely fair practices from our sourcing to our designing to when we have our buying to our execution. 

In terms of our business transactions, we are completely transparent in sharing key details with our business partners. We make sure we are only working with people who follow similar practices. Otherwise, we do not work.

On your website, there is a mention about your work with Bark India. So, can you enlighten us on that and the impact you are making through charitable initiatives? 

The idea behind me opening Paw Affaire was passion with business. Passion is not only for my own pets, but for pets which are abandoned or the stray dogs. But we said, at our capacity, we are a small organisation right now, we cannot do something, you know, at an individual level. And that’s where we tied up with Bark India where every earning of ours, we put in a X percentage that we give back to them which is used for the street dogs in terms of either medical aid or to meet any food requirements.

Could you mention a few popular pet accessories that have gained a lot of love from pet parents? 

So, when we started pet accessories, what we understood was that more and more pets are treated as family members. What we have been seeing is that when people visit homes or for various occasions, they do carry something for pets or want to carry. And that’s when we thought of pet accessories. 

The first product which we launched was a gift set. That is, when you meet a pet or you would want to celebrate your pet’s birthday or you would want to celebrate any occasion like Diwali or Rakhi or something, there needs to be a gift for the pet or when the pet is homecoming. 

On the accessories front, we are continuously working on different types of organic and sustainable toys for them. We are working on bathrobes, which you can tie across to the dog and it can dry the dog. 

The next thing which we are trying to work on is sustainable shoes, and wipes for them, so that we do not keep using wipes which are there. So these are a couple of things which are initially there, they are getting traction. 

We’ve got a couple of orders from countries like the US and Singapore. We are seeing people overseas are liking our products, they like the concept of sustainable comfort wear. Because no one wants to use plastic and nylon, as they want to give their pet comfort but also something trendy at the same time.

What sets the brand apart in terms of manufacturing quality and assurance? 

I think what sets us apart are our no. 1 eco-friendly materials that we use. Also, our in-house designing is completely different. We come out with limited editions. We have unique gift sets and we have got occasion-based purchases. So we keep creating every season. So it’s fall, then it is for Halloween, then for Diwali, then for Christmas and so on.

And in terms of quality, I think we are at par with other people or we can say we are a step ahead. And the reason why I can say this confidently is because in this industry most of the stuff is outsourced, so it is brought from wholesalers of Kanpur and smaller towns who are making in mass and selling it.

We have a 100% in-house production. And that sets us apart and that’s what makes me say that our quality will be at a superior level, always. It doesn’t leave the factory without our 100% approval.

How does the ‘Make in India’ aspect influence your access fees and resonate with your customers? 

I think this is something that the government initiated which has kept me thinking for a very long time after I finished my job, that there is so much importance given to ‘Make in India’ and that’s when we first got registered with Startup India. Today, I take 100% pride in when our products are going overseas and they are appreciated. 

So the Made in India is a story, it’s a thought which is there that we want to showcase our credentials not only in our country but in other countries where we also stand for quality, standards, efficiency, meeting timelines, price points etc, which are not commonly associated with products manufactured in our country.

How does the brand build and maintain trust with its customers?

If you see we are not really into marketing, like meta-marketing and others. We are going slow. We are showcasing our products to the people. And in case they still do not somehow like it or it’s not a thing, we pick it up like a return policy.

So, I’ll give you a very small example. We’ve got a consignment which is going to Singapore. There was one design which they did not approve of, they said it’s looking dull, so we immediately said, you can just send it back. We’ll replace it with another design. If there is feedback by the client, we honour it, always.

Can you share any heartwarming stories from customers where they felt like your product has been really good or it has touched their lives in any positive manner? 

I can actually share a nice story. I want to share a photograph of a 14 year old boy in the US. In summer vacations, he wanted to start a small company and sell pet accessories. He purchased a good sum of products from us, which we sent out to the US. And I still recollect the smile on the kid’s face when all the products were open. And the most heartwarming bit was within two weeks, he sold all his products. And he got the next order for Halloween. So I think that is enough for me to say our products are meeting standards.

What challenges did you face in the initial days of setting up this brand?

I think we had a lot of challenges with regards to sourcing because to get the right product we had a lot of sourcing issues to what type of fabric, what will work, how sustainable it is and hope we don’t call ourselves, like every brand calls themselves sustainable without actually being one, how do we get approval?

I think at the sourcing level definitely we had issues and then the last segment distribution had to come. How do we reach the market? I think first creating the product was an issue and then selling the product. And what we realised was this is not a mass retail product. It can’t go to the local colony stores because people do not understand. 

So we wasted our, I won’t say wasted, but spent the time in learning, three months getting into retail stores, learning from them, this is when we realised this has to be an education, and education can be done either through e-commerce or through creating a network where people can see a product. That was, so at two levels we had a lot of challenges. 

I guess now we’ve gotten better and obviously challenges keep coming and there are new challenges that come, but I think we are better prepared. I think now we can confidently say at least we are on the right track. And unlike earlier where we were struggling to move our products, now our products are moving.

What exciting innovations or projects can your audience expect from the brand? 

We are trying to work on three things. What we are looking at is customisation. Customisation because right now we are seeing a lot of people at the top 10 interest rate want a lot of customisation for either various occasions or for their particular pet. And because we have our own manufacturing, we can work on customisations. 

We are also working on white labelling with smaller entities. And that’s where, you know, we can come out with unique products, alongside as partners. 

Lastly, we are also looking at coming out with products in the pet luxury segment. Like we have clothes by Manish Malhotra, why can’t pet accessories be designed by a designer? So that’s in the making, where we are looking to tie up with a designer to come up with a completely niche product. 

On the innovation front, we definitely want to work on accessories which are more useful and sustainable at the same time, like when we say bathrobes or shoes or some cleaning things for pets.

Could you share your personal experience as a dog lover or pet parent? 

I was actually petrified of dogs. I never wanted a dog. I never went to someone’s house which had a dog. But it was my husband’s 40th birthday and he convinced me that he wanted a dog as his gift. So a friend of mine said, we’ll adopt a dog, in case you can’t keep them for 7-10 days, I will take it. So that’s how Fluffy entered our lives. He came home, and I always thought within 10 days my friend will take it back, and he’ll be happy that he got a gift. But today, I just can’t imagine life without him, it was a complete change in terms of my emotions and a lot of positive energy. 

And during Covid when I had a very tough time in my personal life, I think he was like my biggest support system. He used to always bring a smile to my face. 

We are here to run a business, but always eventually give back to them. I would definitely want to give back to them. I think that’s why I said I’m not here to make an IPO, definitely, but I’m here to at least earn that much that I can give back to them in some form and they deserve a lot, they give us so much.

What message would you like to leave pet parents and pet loving public in general? 

So I think there’s only one learning throughout the six and a half, seven years when I got Fluffy, I never realised that getting a dog is like getting a child home. It’s like a family member. So how a family member is treated, you need love, respect, care, you need time, a lot of time to be taken, to be spent. 

So any pet parent, pet lover, even non, you have to treat your pet as a family member. You need to give that same amount of love, respect, care, and a lot of time. And in case we don’t have these elements then we shouldn’t get one home, because I seriously feel it’s not right on the pet also.