2026 Leading Women in Pet

With bold ideas, inspiring leadership and a commitment to lifting others up, women across the pet industry are building a stronger future for the businesses, people and pets they serve.

Heed the Call

A combination of passion and compassion makes the pet industry unique. For many, it’s what inspires them to build a career in pet.

“I often joke that the pet industry chose me before I chose it,” shared Callie Zamzow, Co-CEO of Zamzows. “As a fourth-generation member of my family’s business, pets have always been part of my life. Growing up around animals and helping customers solve problems felt completely normal to me. After college, I explored other paths, including finance and even pursuing veterinary school. But eventually, I realized my heart kept pulling me back to the family business. Pets, people, and the relationships between them have always been a part of who I am.”

Family has been at the heart of Zamzow’s career. “Professionally, I’m most proud of helping lead our family’s 93-year-old business into its next chapter while honoring the values that built it. As a fourth-generation leader in our family’s history, I’ve worked alongside my brother and an incredible team to modernize the business while staying true to our commitment to service, education, quality products, and community. Creating a culture where people feel valued, heard, and empowered to grow has been key to that success,” said Zamzow.

Andrea Petrone, Chief Merchandising & Marketing Officer of Pet Food Express, was drawn to the job because of its mission and values, as well as her own connection to pets. 

“This is an industry where the work feels deeply meaningful because pets are family, and the decisions we make directly affect their health, happiness and quality of life. What has kept me here is the combination of purpose and possibility. The pet industry is constantly evolving, but it remains grounded in an incredibly emotional relationship between people and their pets. I have also found the industry to be full of passionate, committed people who genuinely care about making a difference,” said Petrone.

While Petrone is excited about the opportunities ahead, when she looks back at her career, there is one accomplishment that stands out.

“One of the accomplishments I am most proud of is developing and growing Pet Food Express’ private-label portfolio, including Fog City Pet and Spiffy Paw. Building brands from the ground up requires much more than developing products. It means identifying unmet customer needs, creating a compelling brand and product assortment, earning customer trust, and aligning teams across merchandising, marketing, operations, supply chain and finance.”

Passion is what brought Eleanor McGhee, SVP of Marketing & Merchandising at Hollywood Feed, to the industry and has kept her there. 

“I grew up in the industry and decided to stay because, frankly, few other industries have the draw that the pet industry does. For me, being able to help people through their pets has fueled my passion for this industry,” relayed McGhee. 

“In my professional life, I am most proud of building leadership skills that have allowed me to develop and support a team that is more experienced and successful than I ever thought I would. I never saw myself in management or leadership, and now I find so much fulfillment in mentoring and leading my team,” McGhee continued. “Over the next several years, I hope to help make the pet industry more data-driven without losing the human element that makes this industry special. I want to help retailers better understand their customers, make smarter decisions, and ultimately make it easier for people to give their pets the best possible lives.”

For Elizabeth Spivak, Vice President of Sales at World Pet Association, working in the pet industry has been a dream job. 

“I’ve been a pet lover all my life, so when the opportunity arose to blend that personal passion with my experience in sales and trade show events, I jumped at it. What keeps me here is the energy of our SUPERZOO community—the incredible growth, constant innovation, inspiring people and the vital mission of World Pet Association (WPA),” responded Spivak.

“A highlight of my time at WPA is seeing brands return to SUPERZOO each year and experience remarkable growth,” said Spivak. “There is nothing like watching an emerging brand expand its footprint and succeed as a direct result of the retailer connections made during the event. Looking ahead, I hope to create an even more inclusive, collaborative environment where pet businesses of all sizes can thrive.”

“Honestly, I’ve never not been in it,” shared Heather Govea, CEO of Carnivore Meat Company, the parent company of Vital Essentials. “I grew up rescuing strays, and I was dead set on becoming a veterinarian right up until I started working in a clinic and saw something that changed everything. It wasn’t the surgeries that got me; it was watching how the right food could turn a sick animal around. Dogs that came in barely hanging on would bounce back once we fixed their diet. That’s when it clicked: why wait until a pet is sick when the right nutrition can keep them healthy from the start?”

“I’ve had the chance to help grow some great brands, and I’m proud of that,” Govea noted. “But what I’m most proud of is the network of people I’ve built along the way and how we’ve supported one another through the ups and downs of this industry. It really is a community, and some of my closest relationships have been decades in the making.” 

Kristi Ross, CEO of Three Dog Brands, was introduced to the pet industry early in her career. 

“Early in my career, I worked for a marketing analytics company, and Purina was my first client. Over 16 years at Nestlé Purina, I had the opportunity to work across brand management, sales leadership, market development and shopper marketing. More importantly, I worked alongside incredibly talented teams, agencies and retail partners who helped shape me as a leader and laid the foundation for my aspiration to one day become a CEO.”

She continued, “There is something uniquely energizing about an industry built around the bond people share with their pets. Leading Three Dog Brands has given me the opportunity to bring more than 25 years of pet and CPG experience together while building something really special with an incredible team.”

A notable accomplishment has been leading her team through the planning and execution of Three Dog Brands’ new 87,000-square-foot Kansas City facility. “It was a truly cross-functional effort that expanded our manufacturing capabilities, supported our rapid growth and created a much stronger foundation for future innovation. We brought the facility online in less than 18 months, which challenged the assumption that significant transformation has to take years.”

It Starts with a Pet or a Pivot 

Many leaders today bring vast experience from other industries. But it is often a bond with a pet that makes a career change feel like a chance to focus on a pet-focused mission.

Wendy Wen, CEO of Antelope Pets, shared that her path to the pet industry was not linear. “Prior to founding Antelope, I built a career in private equity and then co-founded SENREVE, a luxury handbag brand. It taught me what it takes to build and scale a consumer brand from the ground up. Around the same time, I adopted my rescue dog, Poke, who quickly became my constant companion through all the highs and lows of entrepreneurship.”

She continued, “Being a pet parent for the first time, I found myself obsessing over ingredient labels, researching formulations, and trying to make the best choices for Poke’s health. What I found was that most innovative products were created by passionate founders who were solving real problems for pets. That’s when I decided to pair my finance background with my experience in entrepreneurship to launch Antelope.” 

“I’m most proud of the fact that Antelope has actually proven our model,” said Wen. “We’ve taken founder-led brands like Bocce’s, brands that started with two sisters baking treats in a West Village apartment, and helped it grow exponentially without losing what made the brand special in the first place. That balance, scale without stripping out the heart of a brand, is the hardest part of what we do, and it’s working.” 

Gretchen George, Owner of PetRageous Designs, was in housewares before entering the pet industry. “When I transitioned from buying into product development, I saw an opportunity to use the same factories producing our tabletop products to create dishes for pets. I began designing pet bowls that were hand-painted in China at our existing dinnerware factories. In 2004, I left to launch PetRageous Designs, taking my years of experience in tabletop design, sourcing, and product development into the growing pet industry.”

For George, it’s how the company has evolved that sets it apart. “I’m incredibly proud that our company began as a pet feeding company and has continued to evolve and expand into so many different categories. We took pet feeding as far as we could, developing products in ceramic, stainless steel, placemats, feeders, and more. From the beginning, PetRageous Designs became known for products that were fun, whimsical, functional, and highly creative.”

Lindsey Fash, CMO of Ethos Pet Brands, began her career in consumer products. “Moving to the pet care industry gave me a chance to combine my professional expertise with my lifelong love of animals. I grew up with all kinds of pets, from dogs and cats to hamsters and a bunny, and they’ve always been an important part of my family.”

She continued, “What has kept me here is the opportunity to make a meaningful impact on the lives of pets and pet parents. I also love being part of an industry made up of people who genuinely care about improving the well-being of animals.”

“One of the accomplishments I’m most proud of is helping build momentum and growth for brands like Natural Balance that are committed to doing better with high-quality, thoughtfully selected ingredients,” commented Fash. “As pet parents increasingly focus on their own health and wellness, they’re looking for those same standards in the products they choose for their pets. Being able to offer solutions that support dogs and cats with specific sensitivities while using ingredients pet parents can trust and feel good about is incredibly rewarding.”

Megan Hulse, Chief Merchandising Officer of Pet Palette Distribution, studied retail merchandising and management in college. “I spent my first ten or so years focusing on the product development and import side of the business. I’ve been a crazy cat lady ever since I was two years old (though I love dogs too!). Eventually, I found a way to bring those two worlds together. I started in the pet industry as a buyer for Chuck & Don’s corporate office in Minnesota.”

Hulse added, “That experience taught me quickly that the pet industry is so much more than the four walls where people come to buy food and grab a toy on their way out. Independent pet is built around community and partnership. The animals got me here, but the people kept me here.”

“I’m most proud of taking my experience as a manufacturer and product developer, an indie pet buyer, and a pet consumer myself, and using all three perspectives to help build the best possible distribution experience—one that benefits every cog in the machine, not just one side of it,” Hulse explained. 

For Heather Blum, Co-owner and Co-founder of Petagogy, it was a picky pup who put her on the path to pet. 

“Our dog wouldn’t eat any regular food. And then we started to look into it and we were driving 20 minutes away to a store. We were living in a neighborhood of Pittsburgh, and there were so many younger people like us with no cool, funky pet store to shop at. My husband had just graduated with his MBA and was very focused on entrepreneurship and thought this could be an opportunity. He whipped up a business plan. The next thing we knew, we were looking for spaces. I am fortunate that I don’t do this by myself. I have partners, and we’ve worked together over the past 15 years.” 

When it comes to what Blum is most proud of, it’s the growth of the stores. “We started very, very small. Just recently, we acquired three local chains that became Petagogy as of last year. We created this brand ourselves, from the logo to the paint colors to the way the stores look. To see it come to fruition over all these years and then see what it has become has been a huge accomplishment.”

New Approaches Ahead

The pet industry continues to face both challenges and opportunities. Leaders are looking to the future and meeting it with fresh optimism and newfound strategies. 

“The pressure to incorporate artificial intelligence into everything requires a new approach to leadership. AI is an incredibly powerful tool, but leaders need to be willing to ask whether it is actually adding value or whether people are simply using AI so they can say they used AI. The best leaders will be the ones who know when to embrace new technology, when to question it, and when to go another route,” explained McGhee at Hollywood Feed.

“One of the biggest challenges is managing change in an increasingly complex world. Consumer expectations are evolving rapidly, technology is changing how people shop, and pet parents have access to more information (and misinformation) than ever before. Traditional ‘command and control’ leadership creates resentment and ineffective teams who wait to be told what to do,” said Zamzow of Zamzows. “The leaders who will succeed are the ones who can create connection in a world that often feels disconnected. That’s true for customers, employees, and the communities we serve.”

“Affordability is one of the most significant challenges facing the pet industry,” remarked Petrone of Pet Food Express. “Pet parents want to provide the very best for their animals, but they are navigating higher costs across nearly every part of their lives. At the same time, retailers and brands are facing their own cost pressures and increasingly complex customer expectations. This challenge requires leaders who are willing to question long-standing assumptions about assortment, pricing, promotions and innovation.” 

“One challenge facing the pet industry is keeping up with rapidly evolving consumer expectations. Pet parents are more informed than ever and are seeking greater transparency, convenience and personalization in the products they buy. Successfully navigating these changes requires leaders who are willing to listen closely to consumers, embrace innovation and remain focused on creating solutions,” remarked Fash of Ethos Pet Brands.

“We need to exercise flexibility more than ever before. Between tariffs, fluctuating gas prices, and whatever new challenge pops up next, we’re constantly facing new hurdles that force us to remain nimble. That kind of environment demands different leadership, one that can pivot while keeping the bigger picture in mind. In return, this means providing confidence and clarity for your team even when you may not have the answers yourself,” said Hulse of Pet Palette Distribution.

Empowering Tomorrow

In the years ahead, there are many opportunities for women leaders in the pet industry. 

“The biggest opportunities ahead are in purpose-driven leadership. Today’s pet industry isn’t just about selling products; it’s about pet health, responsible ownership, advocacy and building strong communities—values that sit at the core of WPA’s mission. Women leaders have an unprecedented opportunity to influence industry standards by leading with empathy, fostering authentic retail relationships and creating accessible platforms for new businesses to succeed,” affirmed Spivak of World Pet Association.

“The pet industry is an amazing one to be part of. The people in it are truly trying to do the best for their animals, and that shows up in how the industry operates,” relayed Wen from Antelope Pets. “That said, there’s still so much room to innovate. There’s an opportunity for more women to develop new brands focused on advancing pet nutrition, preventive health, sustainability, and technology. Women CEOs still make up less than 15% of leadership in the pet industry, and I’d love to see that change.”

“The sky is the limit! New ideas, new customers, new ventures … you have to stay alert and go after them. We have been incredibly fortunate at PetRageous Designs to have such a dedicated and hardworking team. Because of their commitment, we’ve been able to grow into areas of the pet business we never imagined we would be part of, and that has made the journey even more exciting,” remarked George of PetRageous Designs.

“The pet industry is a great industry for women. I know a lot of women who are store owners and very successful ones at that. The target customer for a lot of us is a woman who’s shopping for their pets. If you’re a female-driven store or brand, you’re really going to understand what products they’re looking for. That gives you a little bit of a leg up in terms of this industry,” stated Blum from Petagogy.

“Women already have a powerful voice in this industry, both as consumers and as leaders, and I’ve always seen that as an advantage. We often have a very direct sense of what pet parents are actually looking for,” relayed Govea. “As the industry keeps evolving, I expect to see even more women running businesses, building brands, and shaping where pet nutrition goes next. The one thing I’d encourage above all is to keep building strong networks and lifting each other up.”

“The opportunities for women in pet are tremendous. Women are incredibly influential in purchasing decisions and pet care, and there is enormous value in having leaders who deeply understand the consumers and families our industry serves,” expressed Ross of Three Dog Brands. “As the industry evolves, we need leaders who can combine consumer empathy with commercial thinking, innovation and the ability to build strong, diverse teams. Women are already playing critical roles across brand leadership, retail, manufacturing, sales, nutrition, technology and entrepreneurship, and I expect that influence to continue growing.”

The Pet Insight team congratulates this year’s Leading Women in Pet and looks forward to seeing how they continue to lead, inspire and shape the industry.