It began with the story of a dreamer and his canine friend. The bond between Anthony and Wink was strong from the beginning. So when Wink got old, all Anthony thought about was making his dog’s life easier. It all started with the idea of thinking outside the box, an outlook he embraced from becoming a key player at IKEA. Bringing his expertise to bear, he created a revolutionary memory foam bed. As a reward, Wink was able to sleep more comfortably. That’s when Anthony thought: why not make it accessible to all dogs around the world then?
From an innovative product idea, he developed a mindset rooted in wellbeing, style and accessibility. This meant doing things differently: pushing boundaries, innovating and designing beyond animal needs. He gathered family members and contacts that shared his dream. Together, they formed an organization, a family, a breed. A few months later, BeOneBreed was born, grounded on comfort, wellbeing and fun. Today, the Winks of the world can benefit from high-end affordable products.
Recently founder of the company, Anthony Deraps, discussed the company and her hopes for its future.
Meagan Meehan (MM) of Entertainment Vine: When was IntelliKatt started and why was that specific name chosen?
Anthony Deraps (AD): The IntelliKatt was launched early in the spring season and it was an instant huge success in the Canadian market. The product was developed with the collaboration of a feline behavior specialist named The CatEducator. We chose the name IntelliKatt because we wanted to include one of the attributes of this product, which is to help increase the intelligence development of cats. This explains the abbreviation Intelli. We use the word Katt in the second part because of our star product the Katt3 (Trendy house for cats). As BeOneBreed excels in doing things differently and designing innovative products, we wanted to play on the word cat.
MM: Right now, how many toys do you offer and how many types of species can enjoy them?
AD: Beonebreed is a design company and we launch two collections per year. All of our products are designed in house and we always test our toys with different types of players/chewers. We offer a collection of more than 15 toys for dogs and 20 toys for our cat toy collection. Our toy designs are always based on offering the maximum of textures and encouraging playtime between owners and their pets.
MM: How do you think up ideas for your products? For example, do you ever work with inventors?
AD: Our designers are always aware of the new trends and they work closely with both canine and feline behavior specialists. These collaborations are very important to the creation of unique and innovative products. We also do co-design campaigns with customers four times a year to receive their opinion about new or existing products. They also share their ideas with us and our team does its best to surpass their demands.
MM: What are some of your most unusual products? Which are most popular?
AD: One of our biggest success is the Katt3, our trendy cat condo! This customizable kube structure is great for cat lovers looking for style and innovation. The Katt3 has loads to offer: scratching posts, cozy beds & fun new cat accessories! Keep an eye out for its new seasonal features and patterns! We also developed the IntelliKatt, the innovative challenging bowl for cats. No bowl will offer more than 500 possibilities like the IntelliKatt does. It allows the cat to develop his intellect while preventing bad behaviors and gulping.
We are also really well-known for our trendy beds and pillows that are made with memory foam.
We know that dogs spend about 50% of the day asleep so our designers created unique and high-end cat and dog beds that will make their nap time the best!
MM: How important do you feel enrichment activities are for pets?
AD: As an innovative design company, we aim to make enrichment activities for pets the heart of our designs. More and more, pets are confined to small spaces and the owners only become more busy. We think it is very important to stimulate the pets’ intellect and help them develop their intelligence to keep them happy and occupied. To this day, we have designed many interactive products such as the Intellikatt, puzzle balls and a snuffle mat for dogs, a remote control mouse and hunting feeders for cats. Our design team likes to push further and create stylish products that fulfill a day-to-day need.
MM: Some of your designs—like the interactive bowl for cats— are very involved! What’s your grandest model to date?
AD: The Katt3 is one our grandest models to date. Cat parents all over the world are thrilled about this product because they can customize their cat tree as ever they wish. They become real builders! Each season, our design team creates new bed patterns and different toys are launched in the meantime. The Katt3 can also be customized to welcome different textured panels, like sisal or cardboard scratchers.
MM: To date, what has been the most rewarding part of working with the company?
AD: Working at Beonebreed has been the best journey most of our employees had the chance to live in their entire professional life. Everything began in our office near Montreal , QC and now the brand is known all over Canada, Europe, Japan. We are proud to say that we do not go unnoticed in the USA as well! The wonderful industry in which we work offers us the chance to travel to tradeshow all over the world such as Global Pet show in Orlando, Superzoo in Las Vegas, Interzoo in Germany and much more. Little to say that everywhere we go, we carry the brands success with us!
MM: Where do you hope the company will be in ten years?
AD: We hope that we will on our way to reach our dream: seeing our products on shelves all over the world. We want to be the trend-setter in the pet accessory industry and we are not that far to reach our goal.
MM: What advice would you give to someone who is striving to enter the pet merchandise industry?
AD: The best advice we can give to someone who is striving to enter the pet industry is to stay closely in touch with customers because they are an incredible source of information. Who best to know the needs of their pets than the pet parent, right!?
MM: Are there any upcoming events that you would like to mention?
AD: Beonebreed will be for the third time at the Global Pet Expo in Orlando next March. Once again, we will present new stuff and innovative products for cats and dogs. You won’t want to miss this!
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At BeOneBreed, we evolve every day and we are proud to develop stylish Canadian designs for you and your pet. We believe in designing upscale original accessories for cats and dogs. More than just products, the company’s designs are created by designers don’t follow trends, they create them. From ingenious cat trees to unique patterns, the designs are BeOneBreed originals. Among their most famous offerings are:
- Maximum Comfort Memory Foam Beds—We know dogs spend around 50% of their day sleeping. That’s why our designers created high-end and unique cat & dog beds to make nap time the best! Through our most comfy memory foam orthopedic beds in the world, our soft and stylish pillows and our elegant blankets, we are the experts for doggy comfort!
- Katt3: Customizable and Evolutionally Cat Tree—Katt3 cat condo with unique design searches stylish kitty for naptime & fun! This customizable kubestructure enjoys feline friends looking for style and innovation. The Katt3 has loads to offer: scratching posts, cozy beds & fun new cat accessories! Keep an eye out for its new features and patterns every season!
- IntelliKatt: The Challenging Interactive Bowl for Cats—The IntelliKatt is a stimulating challenge for cats and ensure a slower feeding time. More than 500 possibilities. Respect his pace by increasing gradually the challenge and that is the best way him to become a Ninja!
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To learn more, visit the official website.
