Today we’d like to introduce you to Jennifer Arias.
Hi Jennifer, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I was undergoing depression and anxiety and my dad and boyfriend came together to gift me a dog, my Charlie Murphy. I never really had my own dog. So when I got Charlie everything changed. My anxiety and depression was less existent and I was always so happy to get home! HE made me happy. I can only hope I have the same effect on him. This is the root of where Mejor Amigo begin.
I started working at a Latino media company called mitú as a freelancer and let me tell you… I’ve always loved my culture and have always held a deep admiration for it. Let’s just say I am proud to be Latina, proud to be Mexican, and sooo very proud of my people, traditions, and where me and my familia are from. The pride has always been there, but when I started working at this company, I started seeing the immense admiration other Latinos felt for their culture too. Not just that, we would post content on Latino pet owners and we all share that strong love for our pets too! BOTH our pets and culture. I thought to myself… wait… there is something here. The change Charlie made in me I am sure other people have went through a similar experience when having their pets. So I thought… we love our pets AND we love our culture… I would love to start a business that would combine the two.
Not going to lie, I sat on the idea of starting a pet supplies small business celebrating our beloved pets and Latino culture. I let a couple of years go by just sitting on the idea. So at the company, I was working at I worked on a Latina women empowerment brand for the company called FIERCE and we kept highlighting women who are bosses, who started businesses, Latina entrepreneurs and incredible WOC who have literally created companies (big & small) out of nothing. They inspired me. So I thought, I need to do this. The time is now. I loved featuring these incredible women, but it’s time I become one of them. So I left my full-time job and applied for my LLC for Mejor Amigo Pet Supply the next day!
There is also an important factor to mention, while I decided to leave my job, I was going through the sudden loss of my grandma, my abuelita. She played a huge part in my decision because I would always tell her I wanted to go visit her in Mexico and that I was going to get time off work to go and I literally let work take over my life. I was so invested in work that I forgot about what is most important… my family. So I kept postponing my trip to go visit her in Mexico until she was diagnosed with terminal cancer and it was too late. It was so fast. I promised myself that I will never EVER put something off ever again or prioritize work over family. At that moment I decided to leave my job to start my business. That is a very important factor in it all. I feel like abuelita has been there in every step of this. I know she has been there with me every step of the way.
I did not go to school for business… I literally started learning once I decided to start it. So I advise anyone who wants to start a business, you don’t need to have studied business. Don’t be intimidated because you didn’t go to school for business. I know I was, but then I decided to take my experience and make it both my business and schooling… we learn by doing. It’s ok to make mistakes too, don’t be afraid. That’s how we learn. This is all how I got here today. I am STILL learning and I will continue to still learn. My best friend owns a boutique and has had it for over ten years. She tells me she is still learning ’till this day. You’ll be just fine, amiga. It’s all about taking a chance on yourself and just doing it. You got this.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey have been a fairly smooth road?
It has not been a smooth road. LOL! Lots of learning and setbacks, but this is the learning process. I am grateful for these lessons. This is what will make me a better business owner. As far as some of the struggles, I would say manufacturing is definitely one of them. The whole process of how to go about manufacturing a product I had to learn myself. I knew absolutely nothing about it. Then when products would be made mistakes would happen within the manufacturing process and it would set us back, but that’s all part of the journey. Now I know to communicate even more and to request constant updates from my manufacturer. Another struggle would be finances. I’m going to be 100% honest… money is not my strongest suit. I’m a very creative person, that’s what I excel in. That’s my strength. BUT when it comes to anything that has to do with the financial, I am a deer in headlights. I know this. I have learned that as a business owner, it’s good to know what your strongest assets are and your weaknesses. I know this is a weakness of mine, therefore I am educating myself in this. I know that if there is a downfall in my business that it would have to do from a lack of taking care of my finances, so I am doing everything in my power to make myself more savvy in that area because I refuse to know what I can be better in and not do anything about it.
We’ve been impressed with Mejor Amigo Pet Supply, but for folks who might not be as familiar, what can you share with them about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
Mejor Amigo Pet Supply is a Latina-owned pet supplies brand for anyone who loves their pets and cultura. With high-quality one of a kind pet products inspired by our roots, traditions, and the appreciation for our culture. We make pet clothes, harnesses, collars, leashes, toys, accessories & more for your MEJOR AMIGOS aka your furry friends. Mejor Amigo in Spanish means “best friend” and that is why I decided to name it “Mejor Amigo” because that is exactly what our pets are to us… our best friends. It’s a pet supplies brand celebrating both our pets and culture. The unique pet products we have are designed by very talented Latino artists who are also friends of mine. We have a Pan Dulce Collection that consists of products with delicious Mexican sweetbread! We also have a Dog Lotería Collection that consists of products with a very popular game that is very beloved in the Latino community. We also can’t forget about our Elote Cart Collection that consists of products with yummy elote preparado & esquites (corn), raspados (shaved ice), rueditas (Don’t know how to say them in English lol), and churros. We are also getting many more products produced… I can’t wait for you guys to see what’s coming!! I have big plans for Mejor Amigo Pet Supply! 😀 I really want to get to a point where I can give back both to my community and to animals who need a home and even medical care. I want this small business of mine to do BIG things. I want it to make a difference. That’s what keeps me going.
What are your plans for the future?
Yes! Giving back to my community and to the animals is a HUGE goal of mine! I also would love to eventually have a whole team! Meanwhile, it’s just the CEO and I. By “CEO” I mean my dog Charlie Murphy lol! We are getting by and doing the best we can, but a team would be amazing and I see it in our future. I want this company to create jobs with great benefits for my employees. I know what it’s like to work for low pay and to receive no benefits and I wouldn’t want that for any of my future employees. Maybe I am talking about way in the future, but this is something that is VERY important to me. Let’s just say this small business has BIG plans and BIG dreams.😊
Contact Info:
- Website: https://mejoramigopetsupply.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mejoramigopetsupply/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mejoramigopetsupply
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/mejoramigopet
- Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@mejoramigopetsupply
