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Pet Accessory Company Scales Up With Help From New Mexico MEP
With the help of: New Mexico Manufacturing Extension Partnership (New Mexico MEP)
About
Amanda and Dan Jackson-Miller started Mimi Green in 2007 to create custom-made designer dog collars, leashes, and other pet accessories after the couple adopted a pug named Mimi Green. Started with a single sewing machine from their home, the company moved into a 5,000 square foot building in downtown Albuquerque, New Mexico, where up to 15 employees have created and shipped products designed by Amanda. The company sells exclusively from its website and through a network of boutiques across the U.S.
The Challenge
In 2021 it was clear that Mimi Green had outgrown its space, and the couple embarked on a move to a larger building at 2428 Baylor Drive SE near the Albuquerque airport. The Jackson-Millers had worked with New Mexico MEP, part of the MEP National Network™, previously to streamline operations and maximize the efficiency of their storage, sales, production and shipping components. They turned to Scott Bryant, Innovation Director at New Mexico MEP, for help adjusting the layout of the new facility they moved to in early 2022.
I was compensating for a system that didn’t work right. If I was ordering $10,000 of something, now maybe I can order $6,000 or $7,000 because the efficiency in the system has made up for that. And that plays out on a larger scale. It’ll allow us to invest where we otherwise couldn’t have.
MEP's Role
Bryant used a camera equipped with virtual reality technology to photograph the 9,000-square-foot facility and the steps involved in custom-order acquisition and manufacturing to shipping. He worked with the entire staff to solicit individual efficiency ideas, refresh what they had learned in previous training, and adjust processes to increase efficiency in the new building.