Cara Santana-Leto & Stephanie Suganami

Lil Luv Dog was founded with a simple but uncompromising belief: our pets deserve the very best. when we couldn’t find products that met our standards for safety, sustainability, and social impact, we created them ourselves. every formula is carefully developed with clean ingredients and a commitment to the planet, while giving back to dogs still waiting for a place to call home. because the animals who bring joy to our lives deserve nothing less.

"we set out to solve a problem that was inherent to pet parents just like us. From recognizing the need to elevate design and create a brand that spoke to the modern consumer, to the desire for innovation in packaging formats, to driving transparency in formulation, Lil Luv Dog is dedicated to moving the industry forward.”

Cara Santana-Leto
founder

  • Gina Pak
    Founding Member and CMO, Blueland

    Gina is a founder, advisor and proven general manager with expertise in strategy, marketing, and consumer experience. She currently advises women-founded and mission-driven businesses on scaling their businesses. She is a founding member / former CMO of Blueland, where she oversaw brand, digital and marketing.

    Previously, she headed Strategy for Theory and Helmut Lang brands and served as Chief of Staff to Founder Andrew Rosen. Her background includes management consulting at BCG and private equity at VMG. Gina holds an Economics and Political Science degree from Stanford and an MBA from Harvard Business School.

  • Tariro Makoni
    Strategy, Amazon Web Services

    Tariro Makoni’s, is a graduate of John’s Hopkins Univeristy, who’s expertise lies at the intersection of strategy, culture, and the consumer. At Amazon Web Services, she sits in an advisory role for the executive team, focused on growth strategy.

    Tariro is also an Angel Investor and Strategic Advisor for consumer brands and early stage startups in technology, culture, fashion, and beauty. She has been interviewed and featured by publications such as Vogue, Vogue Business, The Wall Street Journal, Fortune, The Cut, The Washington Post, Harper’s Bazaar, TechCrunch, Into The Gloss, Business Insider, Elle, and more.

  • Steven Ball
    Former CEO Zesty Paws

    Steve Ball is a seasoned executive and entrepreneur with a proven track record in the pet and consumer products industries. Steve is the former CEO and board member of Zesty Paws, a private equity backed company in the pet supplements space.

    Under his leadership, Zesty Paws experienced extraordinary growth, surging to over $150 million in annual sales and tripling its profitability. Steve orchestrated the successful sale of Zesty Paws to the multinational consumer products company H&H Group for $610M.

  • Daniel Rotman
    Daniel Rotman is the founder and CEO of PrettyLitter

    Daniel Rotman is the founder and CEO of PrettyLitter a leading pet wellness company whose mission is to safeguard the health of our feline companions. PrettyLitter is the world’s fastest growing feline pet company. PrettyLitter was named one of the nation's most disruptive pet brands by IAB, an Inc. Magazine Best Workplace, and Neilson’s Breakthrough Innovation Award winner.

    PrettyLitter was acquired by Mars Petcare in a $1B deal. Daniel is a 2022 EY Entrepreneur of the Year Regional Winner, a Harvard University Fellow in the Center for Public Leadership as well as a Fellow in Harvard's Carr Center for Human Rights.

  • Steven Blustein
    Founder, CEO PrideBites

    Entrepreneur and innovator, is the Co-Founder of both PrideBites Pet Products and Gembah Inc. He is an expert in lead generation, sales strategy, and product development. He is the recipient of the Pet Industry 40 under 40 award.

    Over his career, Blustein has owned and operated pet care businesses that have designed, manufactured and sold millions of consumer products from all over the world. Blustein graduated from the University of Kansas with his Masters in Tax and is trilingual in English, Chinese and Spanish.