Your Name: Sereta Wilson

Business Name: Annie’s Ruff House

Type of Business: Dog Boarding

Business Location: United States

U.S. State: Oklahoma

Website www.anniesruffhouse.com
Facebook www.facebook.com/anniesruffhouse

Reason for starting
My grandmother left me a very small amount of money. I felt a huge responsibility to spend that money in a way that would honor her. That gave me the original idea to start a business. My research led me to the pet industry. The $6000 that my grandmother left to me was not enough to get going, but it was enough to motivate me.

Biggest Success
We opened our doors to no customers on May 18, 2009. We had a waiting list by July 4, 2009. We have continually shown growth and profit since that summer. We turned away 2000 dogs in 2011. We doubled our capacity in 2012. All done via word of mouth and social media marketing.

What is your top challenge and how have you addressed it?
The top challenge for Annie’s Ruff House is meeting the demands of growth and balancing that with some seasonal decline in business. This means balancing cash flow verses labor costs and other expenses.

Who is your most important role model?
I don’t really have a role model. It seems like I am pioneering without much guidance. I do draw inspiration from immigrants that build businesses in the United States. I feel that if they can do it coming here from another country with language and cultural barriers, then as a native I have the advantage of no language or cultural barriers. So everything else is just an excuse.