Story
“This was not supposed to be a business. It was supposed to be a solution for ourselves that turned out to become a business”
Salma Hamidi, Co-Founder & President @ Cola’s Kitchen
It’s a devastating feeling when your best friend is struggling and no matter what you try, everything just seems hopeless. In this case, the best friend was Max, a beautiful Doberman who was part of Salma’s family for many years. From his affectionate greetings at the door to super active walks in the parks, Max was the true soul of the household. And what is one thing any dog owner would like to have? As many healthy years with their loving pet as possible! But sometimes there’s only so much we can do to prevent something from happening. And this is where Cola’s Kitchen story begins.
Max was struggling with multiple health issues throughout his life. Salma and her family were trying everything in their power to (ease) Max’s declining health issues. From regular veterinarian visits to best kibble diets, nothing seemed to be working. Unfortunately Max passed away from a DCM disease which was the most heartbreaking moment for Salma and her family. It is one of the worst feelings to lose a family member, but it’s even worse to feel helpless in these situations when you are trying everything you can and there is no light at the end of the tunnel.
Dogs are our best friends. They are loyal, friendly, they improve mental and physical health, and most importantly, they have an insane amount of unconditional love to give. Max had a dachshund brother Cola, who is a rescue dog from China. After Max passed, Salma knew that she would take a very different approach when it comes to her dogs’ health. So, Salma and her brother Sina got to researching and studying to find the best food solutions for their loving pet and they set this one goal- We want to feed ONLY fresh food and we want to cook for our dog! Through their research, they quickly realized that it can be very dangerous to just put different foods together in a non-formulated and non-balanced way and feed it to your pet. They later connected to Dr. Goodarzi who dedicated his life’s work to dog nutrition and holds two PhDs in Animal Nutrition and Poultry Science to craft a few recipes specifically for Cola. But after they learnt the benefits of a personalized dog diet and seeing how many dog owners are searching for similar solutions, they had an “AHA” moment.
“This shift in dog food industry is going to happen with or without us, so we decided to start”
Salma Hamidi, Co-Founder & President @ Cola’s Kitchen
Company Mission
Q: What is your mission with Cola’s Kitchen?
A: To change the standards of the pet food industry and bring it up to what our pets actually deserve.
Salma Hamidi, Co-Founder & President @ Cola’s Kitchen
Our first real interaction with Cola’s Kitchen happened on the Paperstack Audio Experience podcast when we invited Salma for a short interview. In those 30 mins, we found out a lot of interesting and shocking details about the pet food industry as well as their business journey.
Salma and Sina are onto their next mission to change the pet food industry. They have previously launched Crave Healthy Habits which is a Fast Food restaurant for healthy foods. With their past experience and network in the industry, they knew exactly how to approach their new journey. With the help of Dr. Goodarzi and Omid Taghavi, Cola’s Kitchen was launched and today they are one of the fastest growing dog food subscription businesses. They knew from the beginning that they are not just building a pet food company, but in fact they are committing to changing a sizable behavior like buying and feeding processed food to pets, which is convenient and fast. Change of such magnitude will take a lot of time and energy, but everything is achievable with the right team and approach. With past experience in the food industry backed by scientific research not to mention innovative AI technology, Cola’s Kitchen is on its way to shift the industry standards and really bring it to what our pets actually deserve. And believe us when we say - this food is so good, even a human would eat it!
Our Contribution
With the financing from Paperstack, Cola's kitchen launched a new marketing campaign to scale their business and attract even more customers. We help and supercharge businesses, but most importantly we support people and their missions.
For Cola’s Kitchen team this is not just a business. This is a mission with a purpose much bigger than “let’s build this because there’s a market demand”. It’s more about connecting people with their pets and extending the time they get to spend with each other. The memories and stories they are able to create. And all the warm and loving moments they get to share.
When we see a mission greater than just an idea of having a big business, we channel all our energy to connect with such people and grow together. Because it’s only in working together that we can reach success.
