Grad Courtney Bui Designs for Rescue Dogs Like Hers
We recently chatted with Merchandise Product Development Graduate Courtney Bui, who along with her husband, Anthony Bui, is co-owner of The Long Dog Clothing Co, based in Los Angeles.
The couple founded the dog apparel company in November of 2015, after they tried, unsuccessfully, to find Christmas sweaters and Halloween costumes for their two rescue dogs. "We realized that bassets, or any long dog breed for that matter, were usually left out of the design pool when it came to dog clothes," Courtney explains. "We looked into this and found that no one made clothes specifically for them, or other long breeds like corgis and dachshunds." Mixed breeds were also left out because of their unpredictable shapes.
"With my design background, and pattern making and sewing skills from FIDM, I made a few prototypes that we tried on our dogs and found that we had a good product on our hands," she adds. "We thought other dog owners might be into this, and after 11 prototypes, and using our older basset mix, Lincoln, as a fit model, we were up and running." They started with a small batch, using a local L.A. manufacturer, and started selling with a grass roots campaign on Instagram.
Nearly three years later, the Long Dog Clothing Co sells via an e-commerce website to several countries around the world and has wholesale accounts including retail stores in London, New York, California, Kansas, and Texas. Their products are also available on Amazon and Chewy.com, and next year they plan to extend the line to other pet supplies such as leashes, collars, and beds. The company donates 15 percent of proceeds to dog shelters and organizations each year. In 2017, they donated the equivalent of over 14,000 dog meals.
In addition to growing the line and giving back to dogs like theirs, the Buis are trying to shift their company to be a more sustainable one. "The fashion industry can be very wasteful, and we want to improve our carbon footprint," Courtney says. "We are looking into sourcing all our materials from sustainable companies, and we definitely want to stay made in the USA. We hope to shift 100% of our goods to recycled, sustainable and/or organic materials in the coming years."
Courtney, who was an assistant designer at Roger Garments and Topson Downs prior to striking out on her own, says she couldn't have created this company without FIDM. "My education has helped me from the production end to the sales end and everything in between," says Courtney, who has a BFA from Cal Poly Pomona in addition to her Merchandise Product Development degree from FIDM. "I feel like an expert in my field, and I have that confidence and credibility when I meet with manufacturers as well as retail stores."
Visit longdogclothing.com for more information.
Categories: Merchandise Product Development
