Charlotte, N.C. — Skiptown, a first-of-its-kind, tech-enabled pet care facility offering dog daycare, boarding, full service grooming, and a bar & park featuring indoor and outdoor off-leash play, is gearing up for national growth with a new leadership team in place.
Seasoned executive Mike Rotondo has joined the organization as chief executive officer, and he named Molly Fisher as chief financial officer and Kristen Risby as head of marketing & communications. Skiptown is an emerging brand that caters to pups and their people. The brand currently has locations in Atlanta; Charlotte, N.C., and Denver.
Skiptown’s expansion is being fueled by a strong investor network and growing demand for next-generation pet services. The company is backed by Meaningful Partners and Focus Impact Partners. Recent funding has been focused on accelerating franchise development, expanding real estate acquisition and scaling operational infrastructure to support future growth.
“Investor confidence in Skiptown is rooted in our differentiated model, deep consumer engagement and the long term growth potential of the pet care space,” says Mike Rotondo, CEO of Skiptown. “We are positioned to build a category-defining brand.”
Rotondo is the former CEO of Altitude Trampoline Parks, a premier indoor entertainment and adventure venue. He previously served as CEO of Edible Arrangements, where he led all franchise and company operations for the 1,100+ unit system. Prior to Edible Arrangements, Rotondo was the CEO of Tropical Smoothie Café, the nearly 1,000-unit smoothie and sandwich chain based in Atlanta. During Rotondo’s tenure, the brand experienced significant growth as unit-level revenues doubled and franchise owners added over 1,300 new units. Rotondo has also held various leadership roles at Wendy’s, Arby’s and Honey Baked Ham throughout his career.
Fisher, as Skiptown’s chief financial officer, will lead the company’s financial strategy, operations and long term planning to support growth and ensure fiscal strength. Prior to joining Skiptown in 2023, she spent 15 years in New York City, where she launched her finance career on Wall Street at Goldman Sachs. She then dedicated 4 years to HelloFresh, where she started as an associate director, special operations, and moved up the ranks every year to eventually become senior director, finance. Fisher went on to serve as vice president, business operations, for Wonder, a food hall concept. Her food and beverage experience also includes Dig Inn, a fast-casual restaurant concept, where she was vice president, finance & operations.
Risby is a seasoned marketing executive with more than 20 years of experience in the franchise and multi-unit space. She started her career in the pet space in 2019 when she served as vice president of marketing for Wag N’ Wash Natural Pet Food & Grooming. In 2020, she was promoted to president and spearheaded the sale of the business to Pet Supplies Plus in 2021.
Skiptown has locations in Charlotte, N.C., Denver and Atlanta, with continued expansion throughout the United States. It is a safe place for people and their pups that offers an off-leash indoor and outdoor turfed park for dogs, a full-service bar for humans, dog daycare, overnight boarding and grooming. For more information, visit https://skiptown.io.
SOURCE: Skiptown