Meet Marcela McCracken | Founder & Owner

We had the good fortune of connecting with Marcela McCracken and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Marcela, have there been any changes in how you think about work-life balance?
This is such a great question, especially now that I have been running a dog shop for 7 years. When I first started I had no children. Just married with three dogs. So it was easier to focus on my business and devote the time and effort it needed to make it successful. Now, I have a daughter and two dogs (still married) and its has changed how much time I have to devote to my business. I have to find the perfect balance between motherhood and entrepreneur. I use to feel selfish if I spent too much time running my business and not enough to my child or my dogs. So I found a system that works and has allowed me to have my daughter with me while I work. I find little task that make her feel involved and helpful and that allows me to work on my shop.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
When I was 18 I joined the US Navy and completed 8 years of active duty. After an honorable discharge I enrolled in the University of Maryland and completed a B.S. in Accounting. Shortly after I enrolled in Columbia Souther University and completed an MBA in Finance. I worked as an Accountant and auditor for a few years before deciding that my passion was creating and designing dog gear. I had a love for dogs and the outdoors and I decided to connect those two and create a dog shop that was afforadble to all.

It has not been easy, there are many challenges. Especially when you customer base begins to grow and you realize that you truly do have a niche going. Finding the equilibrium between supply and demand has been my biggest challenge. We have grown exponentially through wholesale and that was a challenge because I was the only person running all sides of my business. Soon I realized that I could not do it all myself and also be present for my family. That’s when my mother and sister joined in and began to help me with sourcing textiles and handcrafting our gear. I soon went from owning a $50 sewing machine owning and operating 4 industrial machines. This allowed us to create durable gear at a quicker pace.

What I want the person reading this story is that it wasn’t an overnight success. It was so hard and difficult because you have an idea and you don’t really know how to get it out to the public to see. You are also competing against big box stores, and you don’t have the capital or resources they do. I didn’t allow any of those bombs stop me from pushing forward. Even when COVID hit. It was a scary time when you rely on your business to support you and your family. But we got creative and used our social media platforms more than ever to make our followers remember why they are following our journey and why now more than ever we needed their support.

Our mission has to created durable dog gear at an affordable price, and even though the cost of raw material have been on the rise we still maintain that very mission by not raising our prices and offering a wider range of products.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
In San Diego there are many tourist areas to visit. Although I am not from here I would take my friend to visit the ocean coast line and indulge in some delicious sea food. Perhaps a boat ride around the marina and check out the sea life. Visit the Midway museum and pay our respect to those who have served.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
My husband definitely deserves the credit. He patience, advice and support has allowed me to continue to pursue my dream. Without him I would not be where I am today in my shop. He listens and gives me advice and is the voice of reason when I truly need it.

Website: https://pawcificnorthdesigns.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pawcificnorthdesigns/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pawcificnorthdesigns

Other: https://www.pinterest.com/pawcificnorthdesigns/

Image Credits
Hana Brickman Reilly Hewitt