$It's hard to believe that it's been almost 25 years since I started Pug Life in my Bushwick loft (off the Bogart Street stop; I've heard it's changed a lot). What started as a funny party gift, led to some craft fairs, a Cafe Press Store, and a vinyl toy line. All of this inspired by that little stuck up pug I fell in love with in the shop window (it wasn't a backyard breeder shop, but a local shop on my street, helping rehome a puppy pug. His original owner ended up being my vet.)
It's been a crazy 25 years. The Ask Chewie products were featured on various tv shows and had a good run for almost a decade. We met so many amazing people and inspired a legion of pugs to take over the world. Chewie, sadly, passed at age 17 in 2013. We didn't completely retire his product line, but we no longer add new products. Maybe someday.
Le Mops, our super fast agility pug, hosted a Pug Meetup both at a local Santa Monica park and at the Zoom Room, earning him so many friends and fans. From him we sprung our Pug Butt line, which has remined popular, and our Pug Vinyls! When we lost him unexpectedly in 2020, my world shattered, and Pug Life took a brief hiatus. I still cry every single time I think of him, so the next edition in our vinyl line has been delayed, but not completely on the back burner. Expect a new vinyl in 2024!
While Lola never earned her own line, she always had a special place for us and inspired our first candle in a sweet lil French girl scent! She left us in May of 2023 and we are still donating 20% of all proceeds from sale of Lola items to Pug Hearts of Houston and Old Dog Haven.
Lenore and Lulu haven't inspired their own line, but are heavily featured throughout our Pug Life products. Patty, on the other hand, already has a few one-eyed pug products, which we will be expanding in 2024!
Those are the pugs of Pug Life. All the love, heartbreak, laughter, and snot of 25 years! What would you like to see over the next 25 years?
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