Meet Candace Jarkow

We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Candace Jarkow a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, so we’re so thrilled to have Candace with us today – welcome and maybe we can jump right into it with a question about one of your qualities that we most admire. How did you develop your work ethic? Where do you think you get it from?

I believe my work ethic came from a few different arenas, but mostly from my paternal grandfather. He was an amazing role model – he was in medical school and had to drop out when his father passed away. He went to work to become the bread winner for his entire family which included his Mom and 7 other siblings, he was the oldest. He started a company with $300 which his current employer at the time invested in his endeavor and he started a children’s clothing manufacturing company.
It grew to become one of the largest mass volume, low cost children’s clothing company selling to the likes of Walmart and
Toys R Us at the time and eventually he sold off 7 divisions of the company he’d grown. He worked so diligently and I spent a lot of time as a very young little girl listening in on meetings he had in his office, often writing down specific things he said. It was as if I knew someday they would be more meaningful than I could possibly understand at the time. He taught me the value of hard work and that a strong worth ethic would always allow a person to forge ahead and achieve any goal that they set.

Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?

I started my newest company Hound Honey Pet Concierge in 2022. As an undergrad who was looking to become a vet , I graduated , but then got married early , had two amazing kids and had to change the plan to go on to Veterinary school. I never got to finish, but have always retained my love for animals and am involved in philanthropic efforts regarding rescue and adoption. I am on 2 Boards that are vetted to dogs and cats, but am always there to lend a hand and find a home for any precious creature.
I came up with the idea for Hound Honey right before the pandemic as I learned that no one was doing what we were about to do. It started as my vision and I had the great faith of others who believed in the idea and me and invested. With a lot of hard work and some wonderful diligent, dependable employees we provided proof of concept in 3 months and became profitable in 4 months.
We are a membership based service that provides Members with their own Concierge and a Team of 2-3 Canine ( or Feline ) Crew Members who are theirs in perpetuity. Our services span across a ton of different genres to enable our Members to literally have their Team available to do anything from walks, to hikes, transportation and wait time for veterinary, grooming or any other visits. help with ESA certification, training, one on one boarding , training support, use of our curated Preferred Vendor List to find the best of the best in any category and so much more. We are the Official Concierge of the NHL and have a myriad of brand partnerships through the buildings , hotels and private membership clubs that we service.
We’ve grown and now have a 2nd home in LA thats being run by my best friend of 44 years with plans to expand to Miami and Palm Beach by the end of the year . My ultimate goal is to build an animal sanctuary in Millbrook , New York, where we’re building a small exclusive boarding facility and will use some of that revenue to fund the Sanctuary. We’re lucky enough to have been granted 5 acres there and we plan on breaking ground in the Spring of 2026 ! I’m proud of the work we do and amazed everyday that I get to be around my favorite thing on this planet – not just my own dogs, but others as well and most importantly I know that I’m going to be able to give abandoned animals their home no matter what. If they’re not adopted , the Sanctuary we’re building will become their forever home!

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?

I was fortunate to have built 2 other businesses on my own, the most recent was an Event Production company called Maverick that I founded in 2008 – 2022 and was the CEO of for 14 years after working for another large production company, creating their non-profit division for 6 years prior to that . At Maverick, we produced Concert Benefits securing marquis talent for high end, large scale charities all over the country. I developed skills that I was able to transfer to my newest endeavor which has been invaluable to it’s success, but I believe that these 3 qualities are what helped me the most –
1 – Perseverance – keep pushing through no matter what. If you believe in what you’re doing and know that your hard work is going to transform into something you can be proud of in many different ways, always move forward.
2 – Conviction – whether you succeed or need to try again, having conviction in yourself and the path you’re taking is key. It’s a beautiful, tangible part of everything you are that no one can take away
3 – Confidence – it may sound corny and I am anything but, however it is true that if you believe in yourself , the universe feels that and sends that message out to others. Nothing can deter your dream or your goal if you have the confidence to take a chance on yourself and follow your heart.

Okay, so before we go we always love to ask if you are looking for folks to partner or collaborate with?

We’re always looking to collaborate and engage in cross promotional ventures. I genuinely believe this is key in most businesses.
Our business model is so expansive that we are open to any like minded people who feel that they can benefit from our demographic and we can benefit from theirs. This isn’t just limited to the pet industry – as our biggest asset are the Developers, Builders, Hotel Owners and Landlords who see the benefit of supplying their residents and guests with our exclusive yet affordable services. Pet products are clearly a great part of our brand partnerships, but we also like the out of the box ideas.
We’re working on collaborating with a few designers to start on the merchandise side, as our Staff arrive in uniform and we’ve all been asked where the clothing and Trucker/ Baseball hats can be bought. We currently have dog hoodies and want to branch out in this area.
Reaching us is easy, I’m super open to other people’s input and ideas and would love to hear from anyone who is excited to speak with us.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.houndhoney.com
• Instagram: @HoundHoneyPetConcierge
• Facebook: Hound Honey
• Linkedin: Hound Honey
• Other: [email protected]

Image Credits

One Wall Street