Introduction 

My name is Tamara Coleman,  and I’m the founder of Bark Bistro Company, the creator of Buddy Budder — a line of 100% natural dog peanut butters. What started in my home kitchen in 2019 has grown into a multimillion-dollar brand found in over 15,000 independent pet stores, Amazon, Chewy, and soon, major retailers. This is a story about more than peanut butter for dogs — it’s about resilience, vision, and building something bigger than myself from the ground up.

The Challenge 

When I first started, I had no roadmap, no investors, and no safety net — just a belief that pets deserved better. I began making small batches of natural peanut butter for dogs because I couldn’t find treats I truly trusted for my own pup. But launching a business from scratch came with overwhelming obstacles.

I was balancing long nights of recipe testing with figuring out labeling, compliance, and manufacturing — all while teaching myself e-commerce and retail. The first six months were brutal. I was lucky if I sold a few jars a week. Cash flow was tight, and every decision felt like a gamble. 

What weighed most heavily wasn’t the lack of sales, but the doubt — the quiet moments when I wondered if my idea was too small to ever matter.

The Journey 

The turning point came when I stopped trying to “play business” and fully committed. I poured everything into learning — reading, networking, testing marketing angles, and leaning into social media. I bootstrapped every step, reinvesting every dollar back into the brand.

Amazon became my lifeline. In July of 2019, I launched Buddy Budder online, and by December, sales had reached $8,000 per month. That early traction proved there was demand, but it also taught me how fast things can scale when you marry a quality product with the right distribution. From there, I built a multi-channel strategy: Amazon for growth, boutique pet stores for credibility, and later, Chewy for reach.

The grind didn’t stop at sales. I had to transition from small-batch production to managing a 25,000-square-foot manufacturing facility, navigating regulations, logistics, and freight. There were countless moments of imposter syndrome — I was a middle-class kid suddenly running a company that was growing 50–60% year over year, pushing toward eight figures in sales.

What got me through wasn’t just strategy, but grit and community. I surrounded myself with other entrepreneurs, shared the wins and struggles openly, and stayed relentlessly scrappy. That mix of humility and ambition became the DNA of Buddy Budder.

The Outcome

Today, Bark Bistro Company is thriving. Buddy Budder is on shelves across the country, our Amazon channel is nearly an eight-figure business on its own, and our products are loved by tens of thousands of dogs. We’re still bootstrapped, profitable, and ... 

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