Meet Abigail Burns | Founder Of Female Owned, Life Elevated Raw Dog Treats

We had the good fortune of connecting with Abigail Burns and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Abigail, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
As a woman sales leader in the tech start up space, and one who has a deep passion for my three dogs: Life Elevated was bound to happen..it was just a matter of what, when, and how.

Before we dive into Life Elevated, let’s go back to 2002, when I was growing up. I would sneak table scraps to our family dog, and I loved the feeling of rewarding them with “human food.”

Fast forward to today, and I am now aware of the unhealthy artificial ingredients, oils, and preservatives that human foods often contain, which are not suitable for dogs.

The problem came when training my poodle, Bailey, when she was a puppy. Getting and keeping her attention while in public was difficult. I thought about the attention I used to get from my childhood dog when sharing my table scraps, and the same attention my dogs give me today when I get them a pup-patty at In-N-Out.

However, carrying around greasy patties was inconvenient, and I couldn’t find any healthy and delicious options that would provide the same focus and love they experience when they indulge in human food.

After a lot of research, I discovered the freeze-drying process, which provides the closest thing to raw without any spoilage, mess, or inconvenience. Freeze-drying retains almost the same nutritional value of the raw form, making it a healthy and nutritious option for dogs. Determined to solve my problem and help other dog parents, I decided to create my own healthy and delicious treats.

I researched the market, the industry’s future outlook, and the competition. I found a manufacturing partner, developed the recipes, created the packaging and branding with a designer, built my website, and crafted my go-to-market strategy. After several months of hard work, my treats arrived, and I launched my business, Life Elevated, in May 2022.

Life Elevated currently offers two treat options: Oceans Delight, made from 100% raw salmon and whitefish, and Beef Grand Slam, made from 100% raw beef, green beef tripe, beef lung, and beef liver. Our treats are made using only USDA-sourced ingredients and produced in the Midwest.

As someone without a formal education, VC funds, or a wealthy family to bootstrap with, my goal is to inspire others to pursue their passions and show them that they can achieve anything they set their minds to, no matter what challenges they may face.

I’ve used my sales experience to pitch my story and products to media outlets, securing earned media with two of Salt Lake’s hottest lifestyle shows. I’ve also launched my treats in my first retailer, SCHEELS in Sandy, Utah.

My ultimate goal is to see my products in Target stores across the country, providing pet parents with a reward that satisfies both their dogs and themselves.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
As I’m scaling and growing Life Elevated, I’m also continuing to climb the ladder of my professional career. I’ve been in sales for a decade, with the last 3.5 years spent in leadership. Currently, I’m the manager of business development at an early-stage startup, surrounded by a team of brilliant, driven, and authentic professionals.

I have a true passion for leadership, taking pride in guiding my team members towards fulfilling their career aspirations. For many of them, this is their first professional job after graduating college, and I’m excited to be a part of their journey towards building a career in this fantastic industry.

But it’s not just about career growth for me. As a woman with severe ADHD and a chronic autoimmune disorder, I know what it’s like to face challenges. Yet, I refuse to let them define me or hold me back from pursuing my dreams. And if I can inspire other women to do the same, then that’s an accomplishment in itself.

I do my best to lead by example, and show that hard work, passion, and determination will always be in our control and makes the biggest impact on success.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
My best friend is in town for the weekend, and we haven’t seen each other in over 2 years! We’re heading straight to the hottest Mexican restaurant for a refreshing watermelon margarita (sugar on the rim) and some chicken enchiladas. The following day, we’re going to the dog park for happy hour with some of my local friends to give our pups some social time. Then, we’ll hit up some bars and dance to our favorite songs from today and when we were in college. We’ll wrap up the weekend with a girls’ “self-care” day, where we’ll watch some shameless reality TV, do facials, and reminisce on the last 11 years of our friendship. It’s just what we needed!

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
There is no chance that I would be where I am in life, without the love and support from my long term boyfriend, Jared.

From the time we met, Jared has encouraged me to chase my dreams, and consistently challenges me to expand my vision and always dream bigger. We previously ran a business together, and learned so many valuable life lessons. We faced all of our success, failures, and uncertainty as a team, and ultimately decided to sell the business after 2.5 years.

Jared was the first to push me on taking action with Life Elevated. He told me it was time to stop talking about it, and it was time to do something about it! While many of our friends and family members were hesitant, he was more confident in me than I was in myself! He is my sounding board, source of truth, accountability partner, and at the end of the day he’s the only way I keep pushing through sometimes. I wouldn’t be here without him, and not just within business, but life in general.

Finding a strong group of business mentors is also something I would like to recognize as a part of my previous and future success. I suggest finding mentors that vary in level of experience. Someone who is equal with you in experience, someone who is where you want to be in 12 months, and someone who is where you want to be in 5+ years. Receiving feedback and advice from varying knowledge and skill levels is important. They can help you develop different skills and gain insight into different approaches on problem-solving, leadership, and goal setting.

Website: https://lifeelevatedraw.com

Linkedin: linkedin.com/in/aburns816

Twitter: https://twitter.com/abigailburns100

Facebook: https://facebook.com/lifeelevatedraw