Small Business Week in the Big City: Our Visit to Fox & Friends

It started with an unsolicited phone call.

Since early 2020, we have been listing our products on the online platform PublicSq. Out of the blue, PublicSq promoted our Combination Harness Leash, which caught the attention of Christine, who thought our company would be a great fit for a segment on Fox & Friends. After working out a couple scheduling challenges, we were booked on Fox & Friends for Saturday morning, May 9, during a segment celebrating National Small Business Week 2026.

Al, Chris, and I made the trip from the quiet Finger Lakes countryside to the much different world of New York City. Al and Chris were excited to have the opportunity to introduce Auburn Leathercrafters on TV, while I was even more excited to stay off-camera, documenting the trip. It all led up to this 30 second spotlight:

 

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Photojournal of our Weekend in The City

We had only a few days to plan, with the final time slot scheduled less than 24 hours before the segment aired at 6:45 AM Saturday morning.

We grabbed a few things and left Auburn mid-morning on Friday. The trip took a little more than 5 hours, including the hour we spent sitting in traffic, waiting to get through the Lincoln Tunnel.

Coming from Auburn, New York, the town in Central New York where we have been making dog collars and leashes and other products since 1950, New York City is an entirely different world.

Even though I have traveled to The City several times for work – usually to the garment district to search for materials for our products, but occasionally for a small trade show or other pet industry event – this was the first time I have stayed in a hotel with a view.

The view from the 22nd floor of the hotel where we stayed was interesting. My recurring thought was how easy it would be to get lost in a city this size. I don’t mean physically lost. I mean that there are so many people doing so many different things in their day-to-day lives, that it would be easy to become anonymous as you travel in your own little world. It’s not a bad thing, just much different than the experience of life in rural New York State.

 

One of the most intriguing things I saw was an abandoned building – a factory, maybe – right in the middle of the block, amongst the skyscrapers. To me, it was evidence of one more story from the a past – and of a story yet to be told.

It’s not shown in this photo, but right next to this building was a skyscraper – I counted about 50 stories – plus all of the other smaller (maybe 10 to 30 story buildings) surrounding the abandoned factory or warehouse across the street from where we were staying. To put this in context, in a small town like Auburn, the tallest buildings are four or five stories. It is a much different world from our hometown.

 

As you might expect, I am always on the lookout for pets and anything to do with pets. In the span of about four blocks where we walked, we saw three pet shoppes and an emergency vet clinic. Driving the next day, we saw two more emergency vet clinics, lots of small dogs, and a pair of beautiful Bernese Mountain Dogs. Dogs have a way of adding life to any space, even a life surrounded by pavement and buildings.

 

The next morning, we had a few minutes to wait for our driver to arrive. Then, it was on to the show.

Even though we took the time to set up our tabletop display before we left Auburn, we had to make a few last-minute adjustments after we found we discovered that our actual table was two feet shorter than what we had planned for. We knew we wanted to feature red, white, and blue, so that part was easy. We also knew we had to make room for our trusty, well-traveled stuffed dachshund, who was wearing some of our handsome bridle leather collars.

After trying a couple different options, Al and Chris came up with a nice arrangement that showcases our range of products fairly well. Colorful Sparky’s Standard Buckle Collars, a few Rolled Leather Collars, a Braided Leather Leash, a Baseball Cotton Rope Toy, and a Dog Boot, in addition to our red-white-and-blue selection of Tuscan Collars, Cotton Rope Leashes, and Reflective Leashes, gave a good sampling of our line.

Once the display was set, it was time to get mic’d. A quick sound-check counting from one to ten, and they were good to go.

With only a few minutes between segments, it was time for Al and Chris to pick up the display table and head to the studio. They didn’t say it out loud, but I could hear the voices in their heads saying, “I hope nothing tips over. Please don’t trip. I hope we didn’t forget anything.”

Then, a quick intro to the host… And, in four, three, two…. we were live!

A minute later, that was it! America’s oldest dog collar manufacturer, represented by generations three and four, had a once-in-a-lifetime chance to tell a piece of our story on national television – an experience we will never forget!

It was time to grab our table and head off the set. We said our thank you’s and good-bye’s and headed back to the hotel with our driver, Ben taking us the long way around the block, courtesy of one-way streets.

 

We spent a leisurely breakfast at a cute little farm-to-table restaurant, and then it was time to head back to blue skies and open fields of the beautiful Finger Lakes region we call home.

Thanks to Fox & Friends for the opportunity and to Christine for arranging it. And thanks for the opportunity to celebrate National Small Business Week with other small businesses.

Shop Local. Shop Small. And thank you for your support of small businesses, everywhere!