Coffee in one hand, discovery in the other.
Networking Opportunities
With 52% of pet products bought online and 48% in-store, the future isn’t digital or physical—it’s both.
In this panel, discover how leaders are redesigning the pet retail experience to meet evolving consumer expectations.
Engaging Pet Parents
Unleashing Profit Potential
Moderator
Candise Goodwin
Founder
Outlier Advisors
Candise Goodwin is a recognized leader in the pet industry, with over 15 years of experience helping companies navigate market complexity, scale solutions, and deliver measurable impact. Her background spans pivotal roles at industry leaders including Merck Animal Health, Vets First Choice, VIP Petcare/PETIQ, and Petco, where she led major digital transformations and launched numerous high-profile, industry-changing growth initiatives.
Candise has dedicated her career to understanding the challenges and opportunities within the pet industry. She has worked closely with retailers, veterinary groups, pet technology companies, product and service providers, and pharmacies - developing a holistic, customer-centric viewpoint of the industry's unique ecosystem along the way.
Today, Candise extends her expertise to clients seeking to navigate the complexities of the market. Her firm, Outlier Advisors, provides strategic consulting services that reflect her distinctive blend of innovative thinking, deep industry knowledge, and ability to spot emerging trends. Outlier Advisors partners with industry leaders, investors, and startups to develop actionable strategies that meet the demands of an evolving pet landscape.
Candise is also a sought-after speaker, advisor, author, and mentor, known for sharing rare and multifaceted insights and practical strategies with fellow Outliers.
Katy Briggs
Managing Director
Willoughby Design
In her role as Managing Director, Katy is focused on guiding brand strategy and uncovering consumer insights that lead to big ideas. Katy's career has been driven by developing a keen understanding of the human behavior that drives purchasing decisions. She has worked with world-class brands like Hallmark, Build-A-Bear Workshop, Helzberg Diamonds and Kohl’s. At her core, Katy is a problem solver and a storyteller. As a strong collaborator and thoughtful writer, Katy leads teams through the strategic process to simplify the complex and deliver succinct brand systems.
Michael Kim
COO & Co-Founder
Jinx
Andrea Binder
VP Pet Industry Thought Leader
NielsenIQ
Andrea has been with NielsenIQ for over 12 years supporting retailers across a wide variety of channels and store formats, most recently focused on the Pet channel. Andrea has a strong background measuring and explaining the FMCG marketplace as consumers shift their spending in an Omnichannel environment, store formats continuously evolve, and product innovation moves rapidly.
Andrea is a sought-after presenter for industry events such as Global Pet Expo, SUPERZOO, Pet Industry Leadership Summit and more. As a presenter, she brings the numbers to life for pet retailers, manufacturers, and industry partners looking to understand topics such as:
•What’s changing in pet ownership across the globe and how are those owners thinking about the pets in their household and shopping for those pets?
•How are pet owners changing their purchase behavior across the various omni-channels such as Brick and Mortar, Online and Social Commerce?
•What product attributes, formats, ingredients, health benefits and use cases are driving growth in Pet Care?
•How are sustainability and other environmental health practices migrating into the pet space? Where are the largest areas for development?
•What are the current human food trends we expect could impact Pet in the future? What should retailers and manufacturers being looking at to prepare for those impacts?
Andrea is a Minnesota native. She graduated from the University of Minnesota – Duluth with a focus in Retail Marketing and Consumer Analytics. She currently lives in the Twin Cities with her family and their adorable black lab, Breezy.
In a world of smart feeders, personalized health plans, and AI-driven recommendations—who really owns the pet parent relationship?
This panel explores the shifting balance of trust, data, and influence between clinics, platforms, and brands—and what it takes to stay essential in an AI-shaped pet care ecosystem.
Engaging Pet Parents
Unleashing Profit Potential
Dr Christie Long
Chief Medical Officer
Modern Animal
Clay Bartlett
CEO & Co-Founder
TeleTails
Terry James
CEO & Co-Founder
Offleash’d
Jaime Bochet
Associate Director
Circa Healthcare
Moderator
Nadja Skale
Angel Investor
VANE
Kicking off, a strategic look at the next 20 years of pet business evolution. Not crystal-ball futurism, a data-backed vision of pet care as lifestyle.
As wellness, tech, and retail merge into emotional ecosystems, discover how future brands will shape how pet parents live, feel, and connect. Unlock key growth vectors—and why today’s choices matter.
Trends & Industry Overviews
Unleashing Profit Potential
Investment Opportunities
Claire Oberin
Director
Cleveland Research Company
Candise Goodwin
Founder
Outlier Advisors
Candise Goodwin is a recognized leader in the pet industry, with over 15 years of experience helping companies navigate market complexity, scale solutions, and deliver measurable impact. Her background spans pivotal roles at industry leaders including Merck Animal Health, Vets First Choice, VIP Petcare/PETIQ, and Petco, where she led major digital transformations and launched numerous high-profile, industry-changing growth initiatives.
Candise has dedicated her career to understanding the challenges and opportunities within the pet industry. She has worked closely with retailers, veterinary groups, pet technology companies, product and service providers, and pharmacies - developing a holistic, customer-centric viewpoint of the industry's unique ecosystem along the way.
Today, Candise extends her expertise to clients seeking to navigate the complexities of the market. Her firm, Outlier Advisors, provides strategic consulting services that reflect her distinctive blend of innovative thinking, deep industry knowledge, and ability to spot emerging trends. Outlier Advisors partners with industry leaders, investors, and startups to develop actionable strategies that meet the demands of an evolving pet landscape.
Candise is also a sought-after speaker, advisor, author, and mentor, known for sharing rare and multifaceted insights and practical strategies with fellow Outliers.
Andrea Binder
VP Pet Industry Thought Leader
NielsenIQ
Andrea has been with NielsenIQ for over 12 years supporting retailers across a wide variety of channels and store formats, most recently focused on the Pet channel. Andrea has a strong background measuring and explaining the FMCG marketplace as consumers shift their spending in an Omnichannel environment, store formats continuously evolve, and product innovation moves rapidly.
Andrea is a sought-after presenter for industry events such as Global Pet Expo, SUPERZOO, Pet Industry Leadership Summit and more. As a presenter, she brings the numbers to life for pet retailers, manufacturers, and industry partners looking to understand topics such as:
•What’s changing in pet ownership across the globe and how are those owners thinking about the pets in their household and shopping for those pets?
•How are pet owners changing their purchase behavior across the various omni-channels such as Brick and Mortar, Online and Social Commerce?
•What product attributes, formats, ingredients, health benefits and use cases are driving growth in Pet Care?
•How are sustainability and other environmental health practices migrating into the pet space? Where are the largest areas for development?
•What are the current human food trends we expect could impact Pet in the future? What should retailers and manufacturers being looking at to prepare for those impacts?
Andrea is a Minnesota native. She graduated from the University of Minnesota – Duluth with a focus in Retail Marketing and Consumer Analytics. She currently lives in the Twin Cities with her family and their adorable black lab, Breezy.
Morning Plenary: Provoking Vision and Urgency
Structured for pet execs keen to anticipate the pet parent of tomorrow and recalibrate around next-gen expectations.
Poppy Howard-Wall
Event Producer
Pet Connect
Camilla Bünner Kruse
Strategic Partner & Tech Scouting Manager
Cargill
Pet Connect USA 2025 Agenda
Selected by the insights team at Pet Connect the Next 25 is comprised of the start and scale up founders to know and watch as they begin to put their print on the pet industry.
This high-promise group poised to disrupt have that special something that breaks through the noise and gains commercial traction.
We celebrate them on the eve of the summit.
Networking Opportunities
Tractive
Website: www.tractive.com
Tractive has been working for the safety and well-being of dogs & cats worldwide since 2012. The passion for our four-legged friends, animal expertise and collaboration with pet experts have made Tractive the global market leader in GPS tracking for pets.
With the Tractive GPS app, you can not only keep tabs on the location of your furry friend, but you can also monitor their health and wellbeing with the Wellness Monitoring feature. It combines sleep, activity levels and other insights to give you a picture of your pet’s wellbeing and fitness. That way, you can track changes and keep them in good health.
Millions of pet parents around the globe trust Tractive to follow their cat or dog’s every step - no matter how far they go - and always know they’re safe and sound.
Teletails
Website: www.teletails.com
TeleTails offers the first comprehensive suite of white-label veterinary telehealth and AI solutions designed to help innovative pet care companies attract, delight, and retain their customers.
Serving more than 1.5 million pet parents with a 9.8/10 satisfaction rating, TeleTails combines 24/7 on-demand video and chat consultations with AI-powered tools that generate valuable data insights, deepen client relationships, and improve retention and commercial outcomes. Our team of highly trained veterinary professionals delivers personalized, whole-pet care—from nutrition and behavior to chronic condition management—anytime, anywhere.
Open to all pre-day attendees — kick off Pet Connect in style with drinks, connections, and stunning views of the LA skyline.