#86 From Target Buyer to Nationally Launching Upcycled Pet Brand Shameless Pets with James Bello

Today we have a special episode for you to celebrate the launch of the pet channel in the Startup CPG Slack! The number of pet brands in our community is growing and we wanted to create a space dedicated for pet brands to discuss unique challenges and regulations. We thought who better to join us than one of our early Slack members, Shameless Pets, who I’ve personally been following for quite a few years. James Bello is the co-founder and CEO of Shameless Pets and is a former Target Buyer with lots of wisdom to share that’s relevant to all CPG brands. Shameless Pets makes healthy dog and cat treats and foods that utilized upcycled ingredients in an effort to fight food waste. As of our recording date, they’ve saved about 1.2 million pounds of food from going into landfills. Listen in as James shares about: - His journey from Target buyer to brand owner - Getting started in upcycled ingredients before the Upcycled Food Association even existed - How pet food regulations differ from human food and the process of setting up their supply chain and manufacturing - Launching in Whole Foods, Central Market, and Target, and how they used seasonal endcaps to manage establishing relationships with big retailers - Navigating when to start taking a pay check as founders - Marketing levers they rely on including in-store promotions and campaigns with Social Nature - The debate on who the original Shameless Pet is - And more! This episode was sponsored by Social Nature. Go to business.socialnature.com