Today we’d like to introduce you to Scott Hyland.
Hi Scott, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
I relocated to the Orlando area from Pittsburgh, PA in early 2019. The confluence of meeting a woman here (my now fiance), a new job, and not wanting to endure the northeast winters anymore led me here. I had spent the prior decade building a successful corporate marketing career at large health insurance companies, and when I moved to Orlando I took on a new role as Marketing Director at a technology company in the healthcare space. As fortunate as I was to have been granted the opportunities to grow my career, corporate life was a drain (I’m sure many others can identify with this sentiment).
Animals (and particularly dogs) were always a passion of mine, and I spent regular time volunteering at the Orange County Animal Services shelter when I wasn’t busy being miserable at my corporate job or caring for our own fur baby Patch. In early 2020 a little thing called Coronavirus happened, and it changed everything for me.
In a weird way, the pandemic was the spark I needed to make a pivot. I met the owners of Paw Academy Pet Care, a dog walking and pet sitting service in Celebration, FL. They were looking to retire and I was looking to pursue a passion, so the stars aligned. When I took over the business, it was mid-pandemic lockdown and no one was traveling or spending time away from home for work, so the business was slow and I figured it’d be a fun side hustle while continuing my corporate career. Thanks to a lot of hard work and a lot of amazing clients (and their fur families), the business grew like crazy and corporate life was completely in the rearview.
Fast forward to winter 2021 and we’re now one of the largest pet care services in Central Florida, serving over 750 fur families in Celebration and surrounding areas. We also expanded our service into Disney, offering our professional pet care to guests at the dog-friendly resorts so they can leave the pups in the comfort of the resort while they go to the parks for the day. We now have a team of eight pet loving professionals and will be growing significantly more as we move into 2022!
It’s funny the way life works and the way opportunities come to be, but my advice would be to have the courage to follow a dream. The only thing that separates people who live their dream and people who don’t is the fortitude to do it.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
No. Running and growing a small business is a lot of work. Certainly culture shock compared to 9-5 life in a large corporate organization. Working for yourself is an amazing, freeing feeling, but it also comes with a significant amount of pressure. Learning to do everything necessary to operate and grow a small business without completely sacrificing your time and your personal life is a challenge that takes time to figure out.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
One of the largest pet care services in Central Florida. We offer professional pet sitting and dog walking to the communities of Celebrarion, Golden Oak, and the pet-friendly Disney resorts. We have a team of pet loving professionals that go to our clients’ homes or resorts to care for their fur babies while they work, play, or travel. We pride ourselves on treating every pet we care for as if they were our own, and this passion comes across very clearly when we enter our clients’ homes and the pets jump on us like we’re they’re favorite fun uncle! We’re also passionate about helping all pets, and it’s a mission of ours to see that all pets have the loving home they deserve. We volunteer at the local shelter and donate to adoption causes. We hope to use our growing brand platform to ensure that one day all of the Orlando area shelters are empty!
How do you define success?
A few different ways. One, that the business is healthy and growing. Two, that our clients are thrilled with our service. Three, that our team members are happy and proud of what they do. And four, that more pets find loving homes because of the service we offer and the awareness we spread.
Contact Info:
- Email: Pets@pawacademypetcare.com
- Website: www.pawacademypetcare.com
- Facebook: https://m.facebook.com/pawacademy/
