Some Like It Hot - But Not Us! 🥵

☀️ June Updates from the Zoomies Pack 🏖️

My whole life I have always looked forward to the summer. It is my favorite season. The long, sunny days - the heat. I could sit in the direct sun for hours, happy as a clam. But I swear something in my biology changed when I turned 32 because all of a sudden, I am now much happier sitting in the shade, better yet, inside in the air-conditioning. I used to make fun of my husband for preferring our cold, dark basement to going outside.

Now I find myself joining his ranks. Am I becoming a vampire?

This new season of life has got me thinking about the all-season potential of an indoor dog park. I always thought of Zoomies' strongest selling point as offering respite from the frigid winters and muddy rainy seasons - but now I see how great an indoor dog park would be on the scorching hot days too. Our girls quickly turn into hotdogs when it's 80 degrees or more outside so forget about playing fetch! Right now, it's the beach, or bust.

If only there was another option....😜

Okay I'll step off the soap box for now. Scroll on for updates!

🌞 We’re Popping Up All Summer

While we work on getting our doors open, we’re doing the low-budget, boots-on-the-ground thing: hosting events, tabling at dog parks around the city, and hanging out at bars and breweries that welcome pups.

We’ll be doing this all summer long—It’s our way of meeting future members, spreading the word, and doing some good while we’re at it.

We've already got a few events under our belt - Anti-Cruelty's Bark! on May 31st, Horner Dog Park on June 8th, and Midwest Coast Brewing on June 15th were amazing - and it has been SO great getting out and meeting y'all.

At every event, we’ll be raffling off a free month of Zoomies, so swing by and take a dance with lady luck 💃

Here is what is up next on the docket:

🐾 Sunday, June 30 — Montrose Dog Beach

We’ll be hanging out at Chicago's most popular dog beach! No ticket needed, just bring your dog and stop by our table for some games, prizes, swag and small talk. Be on the lookout for Zoomies banners!

RSVP for Montrose Dog Beach Meet Up

🐾 Sunday, July 20 — Fundraiser at Ludlow Liquors

We’re teaming up with SAYv Animal Organization again for another dog-friendly event, this time at Ludlow Liquors. SAYv is a volunteer-run, foster-based rescue that has saved over 1,500 animals since 2021. Come grab a drink, meet some great people, and help us support a rescue doing life-changing work.

• $20 ticket (includes your first drink)

• Proceeds will be donated to SAYv Animal Organization

• On-leash dogs welcome!

Get Tickets for Fundraiser @ Ludlow Liquors

We’ll keep the events calendar updated as we add more stops. And if you know of any dog-friendly places we should be popping up, shoot me a note—we’re open to ideas.

📍 Location Update: Progress, Not Perfection

When I (re)started working on Zoomies last fall, I wanted to go BIG. Giant space, full buildout, all the bells and whistles. And I still do. But over time, I’ve come to appreciate the value of starting a little more modestly—giving ourselves room to learn, tweak, and make a few less expensive mistakes before cannonballing all the way in. So, earlier this spring, I thought "let's just start small"—like, really small. Let’s get a pop-up going so we can get something freaking open already.

But—and I hope I’m not giving you whiplash here—as I started digging into the logistics of a short-term pop-up, it became clear: even the most stripped-down version of Zoomies still requires a serious start up cost. We’re talking multiple six figures just to make a space legal, functional, and halfway inviting. The more I thought about it, the less comfortable I felt with the idea of pouring that much effort and capital into something that would ultimately feel temporary—or worse, underwhelming.

So we've landed on what we believe is an ideal middle ground. Not the full flagship just yet, but not a one-and-done pop-up either. We’re aiming for a lean, semi-permanent setup that we can launch this winter and expand over time.

And with that, we’re confident enough with our progress to share the two locations we’re seriously pursuing in Avondale:

🏢 2700 N Campbell 

🏢 2950 N Western

They’re just a few blocks apart, but offer different possibilities.

Western is the one we’ve had our eye on since February and have mentioned in past newsletters—it’s bigger, more flexible, and would help us deliver the indoor/outdoor experience we’ve always envisioned. But, Campbell (right next door to Maplewood Brewery!) is likely the faster route to getting something open this winter.

There is a third property that we’re in early conversations on and it checks a lot of boxes. It’s not technically on the market, so it may be more challenging—and take longer—to lock down a deal. If it does come together though, it would be super sweet!

We’re weighing all the factors: space, cost, timeline, landlord partnership, but as you can tell, we’re closer than ever to securing a space. As soon as we do, we’ll be sharing floor plans, early design concepts, and more about how you can help shape the space from day one. Stay tuned.

🪙 Funding Update: We’re Close.

When we first started fundraising, our goal reflected the cost of launching the full flagship version of Zoomies. Now that we’re focused on a leaner, smarter startup location, our goal is $500K—enough to get a great space open this winter with the key features we need to make Zoomies a success. Of course, any funding beyond that helps reduce risk, gives us more flexibility in our buildout, and allows us to create an even better first experience for you and your dogs.

We’re well into the raise and actively working to close the remaining gap.

To help get us across the finish line, we’re planning on pre-selling memberships, potentially via a crowdfunding campaign. And because "fun" is one of our core values, we'll also be including some genuinely cool perks: naming rights inside the park, exclusive Zoomies swag, and other surprises that we can't wait to share with you.

If you want access to the sweetest perks before the general public, sign up for the Zoomies VIP Club for just $1. This has already been a huge needle-mover when showing investors how passionate Chicago is about this project, thank you all so much for your support.

Our VIPs will be the first to know when presales go live—and the only ones eligible for the steepest discounts on pre-sale memberships, not to mention a personal invitation to our VIP-only pre-launch party before our grand opening. Check out the link above to learn more!

We are also still welcoming a small number of private investors interested in supporting Zoomies at a higher level—typically between $50K and $200K. If that’s you (or someone you know), reply to this email and let’s chat!

Thank you for being here, for reading, and for cheering us on. I can’t wait to share more soon.

Devon and the Zoomies Pack