Meet Ilya Altshteyn

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

Hi Ilya, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
My brother and I had a dog that couldn’t eat kibble at all — she would get really red and itchy, and lost most of her hair. We tried every kibble out there. Then, we started cooking for her — and it totally worked! After seeing how much better fresh food was for dogs, and seeing how few options there were already out there, we decided to turn cooking for dogs into a full-time thing.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I started off in academia at UCLA, but eventually decided that wasn’t for me. I left my PhD program a couple of years into it, and moved into data science. That eventually brought me to a sustainability non-profit that worked with coffee farmers. I spent 5 years there, and learned a lot about where our food comes from. That experience had a huge influence on what our dog food brand looks like now: we focus on organic vegetables because I have a deep understanding of what non-organic farming looks like, and how much safer and better organic vegetables are for anyone eating them (human or dog).

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Oh, this is a great one, San Diego has a few things that are always on the list when friends come to town. The first is Oscar’s Mexican Seafood. They’ve opened a couple of new locations recently, but the original on Turquoise street is still the best. A second one is a whole category: our dog beaches. The Solana Beach dog beach is my favorite, followed closely by Fiesta Island dog park. Another favorite is the Glider Port and the hike from there down to Black’s Beach.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
The first one is my brother — he’s our COO and is always willing to do the things that I’m not willing to do to keep our business going. Our styles and interests complement each other perfectly, and I wouldn’t have a business without his help. The second one is the many amazing independent pet store owners throughout Southern California who helped us make this a reality. They gave us feedback in the early stages of product development, helped us make pivotal decisions over the past few years, and of course– sold our products in the freezer sections of their stores.

Website: https://www.californiadogkitchen.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/californiadogkitchen.official/