PIAA Members of the Month

Each month in the year of 2012 the Pet Industry Association will feature a "Member of the Month" and let you understand more about the person behind the business!

	December 2012 Long time PIAA member Phil Young runs Challenge Dog Supplies, a family owned and operated business in NSW that supplies a range of quality and affordable dog products.... The company started up more than 30 years ago by Phil's father, Reg - known in the family as 'Charlie' (from the Charlie Brown character in the comic strip Peanuts by Charles M Schulz). Reg will turn 92 years old in January and he's still pretty active, Phil says......Read Phil's story here
	November 2012 Sheryll got into the 'bird publication' business about 23 years ago when she met her now ex-husband who began Australian BirdKeeper. At the time she was a teacher of speech and drama with experience in small business management and coaching, printing, promotions and advertising. "The position in publishing was a natural progression," she says. "The transition included organising the administration of BirdKeeper and the establishment and support of the development of a book series called the A Guide to .. Read Sheryll's story here
	October 2012 "Working in the pet industry is very rewarding," she says. "There aren't too many people who love their job, but we do." Read all about Nadine Crampton and her love of this wonderful and growing industry! Read Nadine's story here
	September 2012 Pet Pacific General Manager Peter Chasak was born in Nairobi, Kenya, to Czech-native English parents and at the age of 14, moved with his brother and sister to Uganda, where he spent his teenage years developing a deep love for Africa. Peter went to school with semi-venomous snakes hidden under his shirt and many times on safari was 'cautioned' by elephants, rhinos and buffalos at the most unexpected of times. He remembers climbing Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania on a school expedition. Read Peter's story here

August 2012 Oprah Winfrey once said, “Passion is energy. Feel the power that comes from focusing on what excites you.” PIAA member Charmaine Bright is doing just that and loving it!

An International Certified Master Groomer and winner of a number of awards, Charmaine has built a successful grooming salon, Gosford Grooming in NSW, based on her two passions in life – animal welfare and grooming. In fact, her salon’s policy is to place your pet’s feelings first and only groom humanely and safely. Read Charmaine's story here

July 2012 When Stephanie Travers of Doggy and Moggy Pet First Aid brought home from an animal rescue organisation two ‘very furry dogs,’ she thought she was doing the rescuing.
“But they rescued me more than me doing the rescuing,” says Stephanie. “They give me so much and help me on a daily basis. When you’re on your own and family is far away, it’s nice when you had a rough day to come home and get that unconditional love.” Read Steph's story here

June 2012 When Britt Clapson gets up in the mornings, she has no idea what the day will hold. She runs a pet taxi service travelling all over the Sydney Metro area and one moment she can be towing a horse gone walkabout from the window of her car and the next can be chasing after a goose refusing to be driven to a farm. Read Britt's story here

May 2012 “I have always owned dogs and had a passion for animals,” says Sarah. “I wanted to turn Scoobydooz into a place where dogs came to have fun and learned new skills with other canine companions. The more that I ran Scoobydooz like a childcare centre, the more people seemed to love it, including the staff.” Read Sarah's Story here

April 2012 Queensland PIAA member Blake De Bruin is 24 years old and he’s already running three pet businesses that have made their pawmark in the pet industry. You can read Blake's story here

March 2012 Celebrating 55 years in the business, March Member of the Month is Evio Contenati of Pet City Mt Gravatt - You can read Evio's article here

February 2012 we are happy to congratulate long time PIAA Executive Member, Russell Wucherpfennig of Boolarra Fish Farm - You can read Russell's article here

If you know of a member that deserves to be "showcased" to your Industry, let us know at sleighton@piaa.net.au and tell us why!

PIAA Member of the Month articles are researched by Caroline Zambrano. Caroline is a PIAA member and award-winning pet journalist. She creates specialist pet content and editing for magazines, newspapers, media releases, websites, e-newsletters and brochures. Visit www.petjournalist.com.au

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