Jinx CEO Terri Rockovich on company growth and new products

A former Casper mattresses executive, Jinx CEO Terri Rockovich began the Jinx dog food brand, along with a core group of other investors in Michael Kim and Sameer Mehta, in January 2020, just in time for the pandemic to begin in March.

But even despite that less-than-auspicious timing, the all-natural, American-made dog food company has progressed greatly with their line of kibble, dog biscuits, dog treats, and now meal toppers and dental chews, all made without artificial ingredients and fillers, given that modern dogs are quite different than their ancestors genetically, which requires changes in both lifestyle and diet.

While they are primarily a direct-to-consumer brand, Jinx dog food can also be purchased on the Petco website as well.

Dog O’Day recently got to talk with Rockovich via email about the Jinx business model and partnerships.

Jinx CEO Terri Rockovich speaks with Dog O’Day about new products and the company’s growth.

Dog O’Day – Jinx launched in January 2020, and then the pandemic started in March. Has that impacted the growth of the brand? How is the direct to customer format beneficial? 

Terri Rockovich – The pandemic impacted everyone, including us in terms of our strategy and how we were going to grow as a brand, but we’re an agile team and made decisions to quickly pivot where we needed to. Jinx launched with a subscription model, meaning dog parents could get the nutritional food they needed for their dogs without leaving the house. This was crucial during stay-at-home orders and we were (and still are!) honored to be able to offer convenience and ease to dog parents across the country.

Last year, we partnered with Postmates in San Francisco and Los Angeles to take that convenience even further by offering on-demand dog food delivery. Additionally, we launched a text-to-buy platform, the first in the legacy pet food space, which allows customers to manage orders and subscriptions via text. Our goal as a brand is to continuously offer new access points and innovations to enable dog parents to get Jinx whenever they need it, wherever they are.

Why did you decide to branch out into dental chews? How can our dogs benefit from good dental hygiene? 

From a business perspective, functional treats were the natural next step for JINX as we look ahead to achieving our goal of becoming an all-encompassing dog wellness brand that’s rooted in nutrition that helps modern dogs thrive. As a dog mom of two rescue pups, I continuously struggled to find a healthy dental chew solution that was made with limited, all-natural ingredients., My co-founders and I were appalled when we read the ingredient labels for the most popular brands in the market. We formulated a better option to offer modern dogs an oral care asset with extended chew time that tastes great!

A good oral care routine is essential for dogs and their overall health. Not only does dental care help alleviate doggy breath, but it helps enhance our dogs overall health and ultimately helps them live longer, happier lives. Over 80% of dogs have dental problems by age three, which can lead to tooth loss and infected gums, which can then cause our pups a lot of pain. Daily dental care, made easier with Jinx All Smiles Dental Chews, protects against tartar and plaque and decreases the potential of tooth decay, enabling cleaner teeth and fresher breath.

How were the initial meal toppers varieties chosen? 

Chicken and Salmon are two of the most popular proteins in the dog food category, and we feature them as our #1 ingredient across all of our kibble recipes since they are lean and easy to process. We matched the toppers to our core diets since they pair so well with our superfood-powered meals.

The toppers are freeze-dried and only contain a single protein plus a natural preservative. We will continue to build out this category since it’s a flavor enhancement asset that can pair with any brand of food and any format food.

The collabs with other brands Barry’s gym, West and Willow pet portraits, etc) have been really neat to see. How do those come about? Do you start with overlapping interests, or it is something like shared demographic characteristics that determine what might be a good partner?

It’s been a really great experience for us as both business owners and obsessed dog parents. Partnerships are core to connecting with new customers as they allow us to consistently engage with another brand’s community and deliver new access points for current and potential Jinx customers. The most important element of selecting a partner is finding shared synergies around mission and like-minded values.

Our most recent partnership is with Spotlight Oral Care, an oral beauty brand created by dentists, to offer dogs and their parents the ultimate dental care kit that empowers humans to upgrade essential oral care routines for the whole family. Aptly named the Pawfect Smile Bundle, it includes our new Dental Chews for dogs in addition to some of the latest and greatest oral care solutions for humans from Spotlight. As mentioned, doggy oral care is often overlooked, so our mission here is twofold: 1. Educate pet parents on the importance of consistent and quality oral care for our four-legged family members; and 2. Provide consumers with the essentials that make it easy & enjoyable to meet both human and doggy dental needs.

For more information about Jinx, see their their website for more details, and they can be followed on Twitter and Instagram at the handle @ThinkJinx.