Hi ,

I know there's so much going on right now, and I hesitated to reach out. I know things feel particularly heavy and scary right now, and wherever you are, I hope you are doing okay and taking care of yourself. I like to send this email every year before the start of the holiday season. I know that for many the holidays are lovely, but I also know they can be a challenging, stressful, and sad time of year. For those of you finding yourselves in that latter category, know that you're not alone. I don't want to add to the overwhelm, so hopefully this message helps you give yourself some grace as you brace for the last couple of months of the year, whatever they might look like for you. Also, at the end, I'm including a little "cheat sheet" of what's happening at High Tail Hikes for the rest of the year. It always helps my brain to see a visual of what's happening, so I thought it might be helpful for you too!

It’s that time of year again - the time of year that so many of us small business owners spend months preparing for. If you spend any amount of time online these days (who doesn't?), you’re likely getting inundated with holiday promotions as so many companies compete for your eyeballs and dollars. As a business owner who doesn’t really enjoy the “selling” part of the job, it’s a strange place to be in. I’m extremely aware of how important this time of year is for the business, for our employees, and for my family. It’s critical that we get this time of year right.

At the same time, trying to sell stuff can feel so unimportant amid all of the challenges we are facing. And after long year, every fiber of my being wants to just dissociate, hide, cocoon - ignore the work tasks and the news feed and just lounge and drink tea. But somehow, we all have to still function - still do our work, be present for our families, and take care of ourselves and our communities.

So that’s what I’m going to do. In the coming weeks, you'll likely be seeing and hearing from us a LOT of us as we ramp up for our big holiday sale and our end of year fundraiser for our local shelter (more deets to come). We'll be asking you to opt in to shop our sale early, and we'll be in your feed and in your inbox a lot, probably more than feels reasonable. If you choose to opt in and shop with us - thank you! We know you have tons of choices, and we’re truly and deeply grateful for your support of our small business. BUT if you choose to opt out - guess what? I fully support that too. If you choose to tune out the madness, sit on the couch, and snuggle with your pup - I get it and I FULLY support you. If you find yourself getting annoyed with the constant messaging, I invite you to remember that at the heart of it, we are all just humans trying to do their best in a complex and uncertain world. Please remember that you can always manage the flow of information by unsubscribing, muting, or unfollowing - I support that too and promise I won't be offended :)

I hope you have a holiday season in which you’re able to take care of yourself, show up for your loved ones and community in ways that feel meaningful, and let go of the rest. And I hope that you are able to set aside plenty of time for long, leisurely sniffy walks with your best friend - the kind that remind us to really slow down and be present.

If you have thoughts on the holiday season or anything else, just hit reply. I'd love to hear them - truly.

With gratitude,

Liz

Now, for all my buddies who love a list - here's a sneek peek of what's going on at High Tail Hikes during the holiday season ❤️ 🐾

Early Access Sale Nov 20th and 21st: sign up here

Big Holiday Sale: Nov 22-24 (20% off storewide)

East Bay SPCA Shelter Fundraiser: Nov 8 to Dec 8 (deets to come)

Small Business Saturday Sale: November 30th

Cyber Monday (gift card promo deets to come): Dec 2nd

Giving Tuesday (donation match deets to come): Dec 3rd

Pre Made Drop: December 13th

HTH Pup Cup Party at the East Bay SPCA: December 14th

Suggested Holiday Order Cut Offs:

Custom BioThane Gear and Merch: December 6th

Standard BioThane Gear, Pre Made/Sale Items, Treats, Toys, and all Ready to Ship Items: December 15th

xoxo

The High Tail Hikes Team

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High Tail Hikes

Some thoughts on the season 🐾 💔