Citizens Pet adds six executives and 40,000 square feet in Fresno

Citizens Pet is adding six leaders and 40,000 square feet of space in Fresno, California, as it builds out the air-dried brands Unconditional, Plato and Furry Republic. The expansion takes the company's Fresno footprint to more than 125,000 square feet and adds manufacturing and operational capacity, Citizens Pet said.

The new team covers commercial strategy, marketing, supply chain and engineering, and several of the names come from pet food and pet specialty companies. "Citizens Pet is entering an exciting phase of growth. Investing in the right people and infrastructure is critical to our long-term vision," said Avrum Elmakis, Chairman and CEO of Citizens Pet.

Six hires and a 40,000-square-foot addition expand Citizens Pet

Peter Christiani joins as Chief Commercial Officer to lead commercial strategy and retail partnerships. He most recently served as EVP of Omnichannel Growth at Portland Pet Food Company and previously held commercial and marketing roles at Red Bull. Adriaan Zimmerman becomes Chief Marketing and Digital Officer. He co-founded and served as CEO of the wellness brand Ned and was a founding partner of BroBible.

Doug Siegal is Senior Vice President of Pet Specialty. Citizens Pet describes him as a 20-year industry veteran with experience in sales strategy, distributor management and retail expansion. He spent 17 years at Stella & Chewy's before serving as Vice President of Sales and Operations at Fabdog and Chief Revenue Officer at Humbl Pet Food.

On the operations side, Jagdeep Basi is Vice President of Supply Chain and Business Operations, with past roles at Sensient Technologies, OFI, Foster Farms and The Clorox Company. Jim Abbas is Vice President of Engineering and AI, and will lead manufacturing automation, process optimization and AI adoption. Julie Barron joins as an advisor. She is the former CEO of Solid Gold Pet, which she led to a sale, and the founder of Simply Protein for Pets.

The new team's backgrounds match the channels Unconditional sells in

Citizens Pet is a California producer of premium pet foods and treats that makes its products in its own factory. Elmakis took over the company in November 2025, according to the announcement of that deal. Plato has made treats in Fresno since 2006, according to the Plato Pet Treats FAQ.

Citizens Pet launched Unconditional in August 2026 at SUPERZOO and said it sells online and through PetSmart, Petco, Pet Supplies Plus and independent pet retailers. A look at the PetSmart brand page shows 11 Unconditional products, with the air-dried beef recipe starting at $39.99, the Prime Protein beef blend at $33.99 and the functional toppers at $8.99. The company's own Unconditional site lists the 100% air-dried beef and salmon recipes at $39.99.

Siegal's title fits that lineup. Pet specialty is the independent-store and distributor channel, and his background in distributor management and retail expansion maps onto that work. Christiani's years building an omnichannel brand at Portland Pet Food Company cover the online side of the same job.

The competitive set is specific. Sundays for Dogs describes its product as gently air-dried, vet formulated dog food, which puts it in the same drying category as Unconditional. Stella & Chewy's, where Siegal worked for 17 years, sells freeze-dried raw food for dogs and cats, a different drying method aimed at the same premium shopper.

For retail buyers at the chains Unconditional already sits in, the practical change is a named commercial and specialty team to call. For rival premium brands, it is another company with its own plant and a growing sales bench competing for the same shelf.

Citizens Pet points to new opportunities beyond its current brands

Elmakis said the leaders and the expanded Fresno footprint "position us to keep scaling the business and pursue new opportunities across the pet industry." The company did not name what those opportunities are.

Abbas will lead manufacturing automation, process optimization and AI adoption, which ties his role to the larger Fresno plant.

Citizens Pet now has three brands, a commercial team and a factory under one roof in Fresno.

Source: Citizens Pet via PR Newswire