Anyone who has watched the reality TV series will know that Porowski is obsessed with animals.
Being a pet lover, however, doesn’t guarantee success when launching a pet business.
The star shares his strategy with The Drum
Pet food brand Yummers is the brainchild of Queer Eye co-stars Antoni Porowski and Jonathan Van Ness, who were compelled to give their beloved animals a more nutritious diet.
“During the pandemic, when I originally fostered my dog Neon, I was bummed out by traditional kibble.
I didn’t feel comfortable not really knowing what was inside, so I started researching dog wellness and nutrition,” Porowski explains.
Through research, he discovered things such as as papaya being great for digestion and salmon skin for healthy coats, then started asking why dog owners should settle for traditional kibble.
Not alone in their “obsession” with their pet’s health, Porowski and Van Ness teamed up with 30-year consumer packaged goods veteran Rebecca Frechette Rudisch to launch Yummers.
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The pet industry is a hugely crowded marketplace, Porowski confesses.
The “white space” the trio noticed was for healthy yet accessible products for pets.
“Wellness shouldn’t just be for those who can afford it.
I don’t believe giving ourselves, or in this instance, our pets, a long, healthy life should be limited to those of a certain socioeconomic status.”
A 2lb bag of salmon and lamb dog food costs $37.49 and the average 8oz bag of food supplement costs $29.99. Porowski is clear that basic nutrition should be available to all.
“With Yummers, we have a fun, silly name with approachable packaging, but what’s inside has taken us so many months of research, trials and tests to make sure the nutrients are optimized and that pets are obsessed with the flavor.”
Porowski and Van Ness join the long list of celebrities with their own brands.
For a long time, celebrities were brand ambassadors, not brand owners, but in recent years, this has radically shifted.
“At the end of the day, consumers are smart.
They know when celebrities run their own social media versus someone managing it for them.
The same can be said about what famous people promote.” Porowski himself has deals with the likes of Better than Bouillon, Omega watches, Whole Foods and Vita Coco.
While a celebrity’s platform can help with reach (the pair have a combined 9.8 million Instagram followers), it doesn’t guarantee a brand will succeed, Porowski is quick to point out.
“While I might have the platform and followers to attract a decent amount of attention at first, it’s keeping those customers coming back that really counts.
For that, you need a strong product paired with an authentic connection.”
Porowski and Van Ness certainly got the internet talking when they first teased their partnership, posting on their Instagram pages: “Some personal news ❤️ after years of joking about it, we’re finally together.
Here’s to giving things a shot :) More tomorrow.” Nearly 1 million people liked the post and 8,000 people left comments, while it was picked up in the press by titles including Glamour, Vulture, E! News and Pink News.
“Look, my dog is 80% of my identity at this point.
I love her so much and she’s been my ‘ride or die’ since the day I brought her into my home.
I owe it to her to give her the best life possible and I feel there are many others who feel the way I do about their animals.
I’ve gone on a tangent, but my point is, fame can get you eyeballs at first, but you need substance and consistency to keep peoples’ attention.”
Alongside promoting Yummers on the pair’s social media platforms, the brand uses social purpose marketing to enhance its reputation and build consumer trust.
It does this through its partnerships and support of pet rescue and adoption.
Yummers has run campaigns including the ‘Buy a bag, give a bag,’ which donates pet food to recuse centers, and its Yummers Pets Forever Families campaign, which encourages people to consider adopting dogs.
Having rescued his pets, adoption is something Porowski is personally and professionally passionate about, which he says is baked into the Yummers brand.
“I love talking about my and Neon’s diet as much as I like promoting rescuing a pet to friends whenever they’re considering pet adoption.
For me, it starts at home in my private life and then typically expands to the public sphere.
I do my best for my public work to be a reflection of my own values and interests.”
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Yummers is now a two-year-old brand selling food and supplements for dogs and cats, but Porowski teases that the company will be exploring other ways to improve pet health.
“As for the bigger picture component, Yummers has been working with shelters since day one.
There is just so much work ahead of us in being of service to shelters across the country and while we have our work cut out for us, knowing that there’s an anxious pup waiting for a home out there is what gets me motivated to get up and work every morning.”