In celebration of San Diego Startup Week, we asked a few local female entrepreneurs to tell the story of how their business got started.

Sonya Petcavich is not your typical cat lady. After 5 years of working in sales and marketing for a major CPG company, the 28-year-old Carlsbad resident launched her own startup in 2015. Her company, Meowtel, works like an Uber for cat sitting—connecting cat owners on the go with trusted sitters around the country through the use of an online platform.

In the age of the gig economy—where there’s an app for any service you can imagine—Meowtel manages to fill a rare gap in a saturated market of online, on-demand services. Petcavich presents her business model as a win-win—cat owners can leave their feline companions in good hands while traveling, and catless cat lovers get a chance to spend some quality kitty time without the commitment of a full time pet.

What made you start Meowtel?

When my cat of 17 years passed away in January 2015, I felt a ton of remorse for leaving her home alone so much during the last few years of her life. I traveled frequently for work and would relocate to a new city every two years for my job, so it was difficult to always find a great cat sitter, especially when I didn’t know anybody in the new cities. I figured I couldn’t be the only one with this problem, so I wanted to provide an easy and fun solution for all of the busy cat owners out there.

What has been your greatest challenge?

Building brand awareness. You take for granted how difficult it is to be known, especially when you operate on a small marketing budget. Maximizing ROI in the marketing area takes a lot of trial and error!

What has been your biggest accomplishment?

Having paying customers within the first month! Building a marketplace platform takes a lot of time and patience since you have to fulfill both the demand and supply sides (cat owners and sitters) in order to make the business work. When customers tell me that Meowtel is exactly what they had been looking for, it definitely makes me feel like we’re on the right track.

What is your advice for new female entrepreneurs?

Networking is a must and don’t be afraid to put yourself out there. Nuggets of valuable information and new supporters will show up in your life when you least expect it if you network.

What are your goals for the future?

To make Meowtel a household name amongst cat lovers, have the opportunity to inspire others to pursue the entrepreneurial path, and be a cat mama once again.

Do you have a mentor?

Yes! Nicole Besaw managed me for two years in my previous job and when I told her about Meowtel way before anything was in the works, she was 100% supportive and is always open to providing advice and off-the-wall ideas.

It seems like startups (and tech in general) can be a bit of a boys’ club. Have you faced any gender related challenges?

I consider myself lucky to say that I personally haven’t experienced any gender-related issues. I’m sure the story would be a little different if I was located elsewhere.

What are some pros and cons to being a startup in San Diego (rather than SF/Silicon Valley)?

I actually think being out of the Valley is beneficial to all new startups. While it’s great to have connections in the Bay Area, it’s not necessary to be located there as long as you’re confident in yourself, your team (if applicable), and your product. I know a lot of people who work in the SF tech scene and it’s an environment which creates a lot of nasty competition and giant egos.

San Diego Startup Week is June 13-17. Catch the panel on Female Founders on June 15.

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