Adventures in starting a new business

Today was a banner day for It's ALL Good, the new business we're starting to provide more employment opportunities for people with disabilities. (Our first product will be high quality, 100% natural dog treats. More about that later.) We finished the labels, adding a great picture of our favorite bulldog, Piper. She's got some serious personality. Creating the labels was a true team project. We also submitted the paperwork to officially register with the state Department of Agriculture. It's all coming together--very soon we'll have our first 80 batches of biscuits packaged and ready to distribute to all the pet-loving friends of Sherwood who pre-ordered. There are some lucky dogs out there, about to enjoy their Banana Stars and Peanut Butter Bones!

It's exciting to finally launch our new social enterprise. If you're not familiar with the term, it essentially means a business with a social mission--in this case, jobs for people with disabilities. All of the money made by It's ALL Good will go into sustaining the business, including paying the wages of individuals with disabilities; and supporting Sherwood's Career Connection services. That's right: no private profit, no CEOs taking home huge year-end bonuses. The business exists to provide more real-world, hands-on training opportunities for people with disabilities who need to build their work skills to get jobs in the community, and also to provide part-time paid jobs primarily for people with disabilities.

AND it makes some darn good dog treats. Our in-house expert, Callie, developed the two recipes using all natural, human-grade ingredients. (Yes, you can eat them--and at least one of our board members has been seen snacking on them! Though we'd recommend sticking to people snacks.) The treats are wheat, corn and soy free. The Banana Stars are also grain free. Also in the works are treat-of-the-month flavors, such as Turkey Dinner for November and Cheesy Hearts for February.

Stay tuned for stories and updates as we launch It's ALL Good! And in the meantime, if you're interested in ordering dog treats, please contact Callie at 425.334.4071.