A business-savvy full-time nurse has created her own vegan-friendly dog treat business. Melissa Nelson was inspired to set up the company due to her love for her Pekingese pooch called Coco.
Her business Paws by Coco sells a range of healthy vegan dog treats, as well as grooming products. The 27-year-old also hopes to venture into selling her own-brand harness, leads, collars and poo bags.
Melissa loves her day job, where she works as a community nurse. This involves visiting patients' homes to provide them with the best care possible.
On balancing full-time work with her dog business, Melissa told Teeside Live: "It's quite tough being in the nursing industry but I absolutely love my job, I've got a huge passion for it. I think it helps that I'm a huge dog lover as well, that's why I'm really into the business side of things because I want to provide all the dogs with the best that I can provide my own.
"As with any business, it is quite competitive. I always have a little nosy on everybody's websites as much as I can so that I can guarantee that my products are always cheaper; I always beat the price.
"I like to think that it's my customer service and gaining a relationship with my customers, as well as the products we sell, that makes us stand out. I don't know anybody that sells natural and vegan-friendly grooming products, and in regards to our price, I don't know anyone who has beat our prices.
"When I look at a wholesale price, for example, it was five pounds, and I noticed that people who were selling similar products were adding an extra fifteen pounds on top of that. Because I'm a nurse, and I'm not greedy, I don't mind beating their prices so that I know my customers are getting the best products for their dogs."
