Year-end reflections from a Web Master

Happy New Year! As 2014 comes to a close, it is time to look forward to 2015. It seems that time is passing faster than ever and there is never enough time to do all that needs to be done. As we reflect on the past year and plan for the new one, it is time to thank our customers and to remember how Country Brook Design started.

Country Brook Design is located in the small town of Moulton in north Alabama. The owners are Jim Witt and his wife, Chris. The business was started in their home but, after a few short years, more room was needed. Country Brook Design now has its own building and our staff continues to grow. In fact, we welcomed five new employees in 2014!

The idea for Country Brook Design started back when the Witts were breeders of AKC-registered Miniature Pinschers. Since these dogs are small, the only collars available for their small size were constructed from plain webbing or chains. The Witts were showing their dogs in obedience and confirmation trials and wanted collars that looked as good as they worked.

Jim and Chris started designing and making collars for their own dogs, then started offering them for sale on the internet and Ebay. These collars were custom-made with a nylon webbing core and covered with durable, attractive fabric. Dozens of beautiful designs were offered, and all were built with strong, reliable hardware.

As the collars started selling, requests began to come in for the items used in manufacturing these well-made collars. Folks noticed the quality of the snap hooks, D-rings, triglides, contoured side-release buckles, and of course, the nylon and polypropylene webbing. At that point, the business grew so fast that the Witts stopped breeding and showing Min-Pins so they could work full-time in the webbing and hardware business.

From the beginning of the business in 2003, our goal was to provide attractive, sturdy dog collars and leashes. We still strive to meet this goal every day with top-quality webbing and hardware, fast service, and dependable shipping for every product we sell.

The success of Country Brook Design continues to be based on the many great products offered and a desire to treat customers as we would like to be treated. We strive to provide our customers, new and old, with as much information about our products as we can before the sale and then fast delivery of their purchase after the sale.

A shout out to Haven of the Ozarks Animal Sanctuary! 3,500 shelters in the U.S. will need your help in 2015.

As we go forward into a new year, we will continue to improve our business in every way we can. We'll continue to search for great products that can become part of our product inventory. We'll be publishing blog articles on a weekly basis in 2015. You'll see some great 'how-to' articles for our DIY customers and some ideas that should spark your creativity, too.

A love for pets continues to be important to Jim and Chris Witt. When our customers send pictures of their pets wearing our collars, we share these with the staff and customers when we can. We also have exciting plans to expand Country Brook Design's commitment to encouraging shelter and rescue efforts in 2015 and we'll need your help to make it work!

If you have questions about a product you see on our website, our knowledgeable customer service staff can be contacted at 256-947-0700 or [email protected].

We wish you a very prosperous and happy 2015!