Annie Digs: design with dogs in mind

I’ll admit it: I have a love-hate relationship with social media.  Sometimes it zaps my productivity. But the reason I keep coming back is that it sometimes leads to making new friends all over the world! When I happened upon @loveanniedigs on Instagram, I instantly fell in love.  Dogs and design, and wouldn’t you know – this company is headquartered right in my backyard!  So after a few messages, Blair and I met up in real life!

It's my pleasure to introduce you to Blair Erwin, founder of Annie Digs.  We bonded over our love of dogs, design, motherhood, and entrepreneurship.

Tell me about Annie Digs and your motivation for starting your business.

Blair: Annie Digs is a lifestyle brand for style savvy pups and their design conscious owners.  Our flagship products are designer dog pillows, and we have more exciting products in the works.

I was a special ed teacher for 10 years, which was a physically and emotionally demanding job.  When I got pregnant, I took a break from teaching but still wanted to do something for myself.  I considered a lot of random things that I was not qualified for and had no business doing: opening a wine bar or coffee shop – then one day I saw an image by an interior design blogger with a beautiful pillow on the floor.  It was a lightbulb moment for me, and I was inspired to create dog beds that complement a room’s design.

You never know where you’ll find inspiration!  So how did you start the design process?

Blair: Back before I was a teacher, I worked in the fashion industry in NYC, so I’ve always been drawn to textiles, and really liked the idea of pairing coordinating fabrics together.  My vision is that your dog bed should be part of the overall décor, or even the main accent in your room.  For example, my bedroom is decorated in neutral colors, and the XL dog bed is a colorful focal point.

Tell me about your dogs Annie and Fletcher.

Blair: Annie (8 yr) and Fletcher (6 yr) are both Boxers, but we rarely call them by their names.  Annie is “Dita” and Fletcher is “Puppy Man.”  Annie Digs is named after Annie.

I love their nicknames!  Back to the business, what was it like building your business from scratch?

Blair: I was fortunate to make a connection with another small business owner early on to learn the ropes and get Annie Digs off the ground.  However, it hasn’t been all smooth sailing – I’ve definitely made mistakes along the way.  For example, in the beginning I was so excited to launch that I started with way too much inventory without knowing what styles and sizes would be popular.  Less is more! I also didn’t know how to cost-effectively source fabrics & manufacturers and as a result, my expenses were very high.  Luckily I’ve learned from those mistakes and each day I feel a little more confident in my decision making!

So true, building a business includes a lot of experimentation and learning by trial and error.  What else do you love about being your own boss?

Blair: I love having flexibility around my schedule and being able to make all the decisions.  There’s such a sense of accomplishment when I look back at how far Annie Digs has come.  I also love when clients post photos of their dog pillows – it’s so cool to know that my designs are decorating homes across the country!

What exciting things do you have planned for the next year?

Blair: Right now, the Laura Park dog pillows (a collaboration between Annie Digs and Laura Park Designs) is our bestseller and has already sold out and restocked!  We’ll be planning a second line of these popular pillows soon, as well as collars, leashes, and bandanas. 

The Pepe collection is also a top seller, which features authentic fabrics I sourced from Guatemala. 

Later in 2021, Annie Digs will be partnering with Chewy.com to design a line of orthopedic beds and kennel pads for senior dogs.

That’s fabulous!  Where can we purchase one of your dog pillows?

Blair: You can currently find them on the Annie Digs website, the Laura Park Designs website, and Bering’s Hardware in Houston. We are rolling out in a lot of new stores later this year! And the best place to connect with me is Instagram @loveanniedigs

Thank you Blair for giving a behind the scenes look at Annie Digs. And a special thank you to Lexi and Mark with Coerver Custom Homes for graciously hosting us for this photo shoot!