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Omar
and Carolyn Gonzalez have been involved in the pet industry for
over 20 years. In 2004, they were named “the couple to
watch” by Pet Product News, and in 2005, Carolyn Gonzalez
was featured as one of the ten leading women in the business.
The couple currently operates three OMAR’S EXOTIC BIRDS stores, a
bird breeding ranch and ZOOMARS Petting Zoo & Bird Park. |
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Omar
Gonzalez first discovered his passion for animals as a young
boy living in Cuba where he and his father would catch wild
songbirds (known in Cuba as “mariposa”)
and build cages from twigs. Omar’s family left Cuba when he was seven settling
in California. Knowing his love for birds, Omar’s parents bought two canaries
for their son to keep as pets. Throughout his childhood Omar studied everything
he could about tropical birds and in his early twenties purchased two macaws
from a local bird shop. However unlike today when most parrots sold are bred
domestically, back in the 80’s most birds were either imported or illegally
smuggled. Due to foreign diseases and the stress of inhumane capture, many birds
would die soon after reaching the States. Unfortunately this was the fate for
both of Omar’s parrots and his first real lesson about the importance of
buying a healthy bird from a reputable store.
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Dissatisfied
with the unsanitary conditions of most bird shops at that time,
Omar began talking to people in the business and started buying birds directly
from the quarantine stations. Since parrot-taming techniques were inhumane back
then, Omar relied on his own experiences with the birds to develop kinder ways
of taming them. Once the birds were trained, he began selling them, first out
of his house, then a local swap meet. After graduating from college in 1984,
Omar’s father lent him $10,000 to open his first store. Five years later,
a second store was opened.
As
Omar’s passion for parrots grew, he sought better ways of training them,
improved breeding methods, and went on to develop what became known as the best
line of food and cages in the industry. But what Omar is most famous for is his
creative design of the suspended, pod-like perches that hang from the ceilings
of the OMAR’S stores, allowing for a more interactive visit with customers. |
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Carolyn
Gonzalez launched her career in the 80s while creating a whimsical
collection of dog toys called BARKERSVILLE for a college marketing
project. With encouragement
from her professor, she began researching toy companies in the business to see
if one would be interested in manufacturing her line. Working in Atlantic City
at the time, she found out when the next pet convention was to be held and snuck
herself in. Heading straight to the Vo-Toys booth she pitched her idea to the
owner who was so impressed that after a more formal interview, agreed to manufacture
her toys and hired her to help start a spin-off company called Multipet. In just
three years, Carolyn worked closely with overseas manufacturers to create over
200 products for Multipet and won a Product-of-the-Year award for BARKERSVILLE.
With a desire to expand into other areas of the pet business, Carolyn left Multipet
to start her own marketing firm called INSTINCT. Having been a spokesmodel for
everything from potato chips to Trump’s casino, she was familiar with the
development of PR campaigns and offered that to her clients as well. In 1998,
she traveled to China to work on products for WOOF-MART, a pet department concept
she created for WalMart stores. |
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| Seizing
an opportunity to venture into another area, Carolyn went to
work for the prestigious American Kennel Club in New York City,
who was searching for
someone to head up its first-ever marketing department. There she created strategic
plans for commercial ventures, secured millions of dollars in sponsorships and
negotiated broadcast deals with “Animal Planet” to put AKC dog events
on television for the first time in over 100 years. |
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| Having
been friends for many years, meeting up at trade shows from
NY to LA,
Omar Gonzalez finally convinced his “soulmate” to move across the
country and marry him. In 2001 they tied the knot in a bird-themed wedding at
the Mission Inn in Riverside. |
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| Combining
their talents, the two took OMAR’S EXOTIC BIRDS to a new
level creating a new logo and redesigning the stores with a more
contemporary look.
Not only did customers take notice but so did Pet Product News who presented
the Gonzalez’s with the 2002 RETAILER OF THE YEAR AWARD for the best independently-owned
pet store chain. In 2003 they opened a West Hollywood location that they marketed
not only to sell birds, but attract producers and celebrities to rent their feathered
follies for various Hollywood parties and television shows. In 2004, the couple
purchased a five-acre ranch in wine country and built a magnificent bird breeding
resort on the property. |
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In 2005, Omar and Carolyn purchased the Jones Family Mini-Farm from longtime
owners Gil and Millie Jones who had incorporated a petting zoo into the 100-year
old property in the 80’s. The Gonzalezes remain grateful to the Joneses
for helping them finance the landmark attraction and entrusting them to continue
the business they had operated there for over 15 years. To kick off their latest
project, Omar threw Carolyn a birthday party in the historic home and surprised
her with a miniature donkey to symbolize the start of their new venture. |
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| Omar
and Carolyn Gonzalez are active members in the communities where
they work and live. They conduct educational bird shows at local
schools,
visit senior centers with their pet macaws, and set up bunny patches
and goat pens at county fairs and pet expos. Aside from running the
daily operations of the company, Omar continues to study birds and
lecture at pet shows. He is also working on a new line of products
and hopes to one day fulfill his dream of building a free-flighted
bird park. Carolyn keeps busy marketing the couple’s businesses
while also developing a children’s educational program about
parrots and writing a book of nursery rhymes about the animals in their
petting zoo. |
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