We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Melissa Gilman. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Melissa below.
Hi Melissa, appreciate you sitting with us today to share your wisdom with our readers. So, let’s start with resilience – where do you get your resilience from?
I would say I learned resilience at a very young age of 10 when I lost my mom to cancer. This was a tough time not only for me but for my dad as well. My dad was a great man and watching him go through the everyday struggle of trying to keep our bills and lifestyle afloat as well as trying to be a role model for me as a single parent. My dad and I struggled together but we never gave up. I was very fortunate to graduate high school and start to pursue my degree in Biology. As if being a full time college student and a full time worker in today’s world isn’t enough the world had another unfortunate curveball to throw at me. I was in my second semester of school when my dad suffered a stroke. It came on very sudden and it was completely unexpected. My dad passed away in October of 2014. I continued working full time and I finished my bachelors is Biology. Resilience to me is how much one can withstand and not give up, to keep moving forward when everything else around you is crumbling. Being resilient is a must have trait to survive not only in the business world but in the world that you have created around you.
Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?
My business story begins with being a 30 year old stay at home mom of a 3 year old and a 2 year old. I wanted to have a job where I get to have a flexible schedule and be around my kids. As I was getting lunch ready for the babies, my dog Oso was sitting at the edge of the kitchen begging as usual and that’s when it hit me, “I should make Oso homemade and healthy treats”. So, that’s exactly what I did! I started researching some recipes and played around with organic ingredients, the first dog treat I made was peanut butter, banana and oat. Oso loved it! (Along with my husband, he had to try it too)! Since then I’ve been working on my social media, I’ve been doing local farmers markets and pop ups, and as of now I’m trying to add in some merchandise and switch up some recipes! It’s been a whole year since I started this journey and it’s been so much fun! It’s an awesome feeling seeing how many dogs love my dog treats and getting to talk to their owners at the weekly farmers markets! I’m getting to do all of this with my babies by my side and getting to give Oso organic and all natural treats, it’s a win-win in my book!
Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
Dedication. Being dedicated is a term that is easily thrown around. It truly does take a day in and day out effort to make your business successful! I do something everyday in the hopes of growing my newly found journey!
Open minded. This is something you have to be when it comes to different customers and most importantly different puppies! Not all puppies have the same diet plans and I am always adapting to meet the needs of my customers!
Not afraid of failure or rejection. This is an area that you must be okay with facing. Adversity is tough and it always will be. Every business will have its good days and its bad days. All we can do is keep smiling and keep pushing forward. Positivity truly changes the world!
Tell us what your ideal client would be like?
My ideal client would be someone who loves their dogs as if they were their children. Someone who wants their dogs to live a healthier lifestyle without all the preservatives that is put into dog food and treats. In my short span of business, I’ve built many relationships with my clients and we all have the same goal: making our fur babies healthier and giving them a better life!
Contact Info:
- Instagram: osoyummy_dogtreats
- Facebook: Oso Yummy Dog Treats
