In 2006, Margot and Joe Crump were making pet treats out of their garage in Caledon, Ont. Today, 20 years later, Ms. Crump is CEO of The Crump Group, a Mississauga-based pet food company with 600 employees, manufacturing facilities in Canada and the U.S., and products carried in major North American retailers including Costco, PetSmart, Pet Valu, Walmart, Loblaw and Target.

Ms. Crump says she feels humbled to see what they’ve accomplished.

“We often walk around and see all the meetings taking place, and it's incredible to see the energy, the ideas and the expertise,” says Ms. Crump. “Seeing people grow in their careers and the pride they take in building something meaningful is really quite rewarding.”

The Crump Group is renowned for its popular all-natural dog treats, such as Sweet Potato Chews, Beef Liver Bites and Beef Tendersticks, under brands including Crumps’ Naturals and Caledon Farms. Over the years, the company has expanded into other pet products including dental care sticks, treats to promote gut health and gently cooked food.

Early on, the founding duo did everything themselves: sales, operations, product development, marketing, finance. As the company grew, they realized how important it was to build the right team and empower them to lead different parts of the organization. Ms. Crump describes their management style as collaborative, an approach that evolved naturally as the company scaled beyond what she and her husband Joe could manage alone.

“When I meet with new hires one-on-one, I’m always interested in hearing their backgrounds,” she says. “I tell them to treat what they’re doing like it’s their own. We’re an entrepreneurial organization, and we want people to think and act that way.”

Mr. Crump, chairman, echoes his wife’s enthusiasm for collaboration, noting that “a good founder realizes that the growth of a successful company comes from surrounding yourself with extremely talented people and giving them the autonomy to make decisions.”

He adds that being a family-owned business resonates with the company’s retail partners and consumers because they can see how much he and Ms. Crump truly care about the business. “I quite enjoy coming to work and meeting new people or speaking with customers every day. I can't imagine doing anything else."

Stephanie Kusters, vice-president of strategy, planning and corporate affairs at The Crump Group, says that the Crumps’ openness and approachability make it clear that everyone’s perspectives are valued.

“That helps in an organization like ours because it means that ideas can come from anywhere and anyone, and that's celebrated,” Ms. Kusters says. “The openness also allows for a real ‘permission to fail’ that you don't often see from a leadership team. We're able to try something new, fail fast, and that's really freeing.”

The company holds an annual internal Dragon's Den-style competition in which employees from every department pitch new product ideas to a panel of judges. Several of those pitches have since made it to market. “We joke that what we accomplish in one year is seven anywhere else,” Ms. Kusters adds. “Kind of like dog years.”

A strong and close-knit company culture has been built from day one. For example, Mr. Crump notes that three sisters and a niece from one local family have come through their doors as workers over the years. Two are still there today, now on the management team.

“They're almost like family themselves,” he says. “They've been with us for so long, and they continue to love coming to work.”

Innovation and agility have always been central to how The Crump Group operates. The company has in-house labs and employs pet nutritionists, a rarity in a sector where many brands outsource manufacturing. The leadership team has consistently looked ahead, paying close attention to trends in human health and wellness, recognizing that these often shape how pet owners think about feeding their pets. The company also continues to invest in its capabilities, including a current initiative to build freeze-dry capacity at its 200,000-square-foot manufacturing facility in North Carolina.

“What’s exciting about the day-to-day is that we’re always evolving,” Ms. Crump says. “We’re constantly thinking about what’s next, how to improve how we operate and continue to meet changing expectations from pet owners.”

This year, The Crump Group is celebrating 20 years of success and innovation ahead of industry norms. The company also earned its first Canada's Best Managed Companies designation, which honours excellence in Canadian-owned private companies and is sponsored by Deloitte and CIBC.

Eric Wood, senior manager, mid-market commercial at CIBC, is a relationship manager and coach working with The Crump Group through the Canada’s Best Managed program. He says that working through the application process with the company, along with his Deloitte co-coach, was a pleasure.

“It was apparent early on that the various teams – strategy, operations, finance, HR, marketing – were all on the same page and clear on the short-, medium- and long-term priorities of the company, even for those who were new to the team,” he says. “It’s uncommon for first year applicants to be in a position where the challenge for the CIBC and Deloitte coaches quickly became: What do they leave off the application?”

Mr. Wood says that interacting with the Crump Group team in his role as their banker has also been rewarding.

“As a client, The Crump Group is a marquee relationship for CIBC. The ownership and finance teams are always accessible and take opportunities to bring me up to speed on recent wins and challenges ahead – which has been extremely valuable, as an advisor and lender, given the growth trajectory they are working towards.”

Mr. Wood points to the company’s admirable “appetite and openness” to evolve the business, while remaining true to their initial focus of providing limited-ingredient, premium pet treats for dog owners.

“This growth takes risk, hard decisions and an ongoing willingness to constructively consider guidance from their customers, their team and their advisors,” he says. “[That’s] a mindset that I continue to see in Joe and Margot today – some 20 years from their initial product launch.”

Ms. Crump says that CIBC’s ongoing support as a banking partner has been key to their success as a company. “In a fast-moving environment, timing and follow-through matter, and CIBC consistently delivers. They move quickly, stay aligned with our priorities and execute with a level of responsiveness that’s critical in a business like ours.”

She says that the Best Managed designation matters because it recognizes not just the company's growth, but how that growth happened. The value of the program goes beyond the designation itself, she adds.

“It forced us to really reflect and answer some hard questions,” she says. “One of the biggest takeaways was being more rigorous in how we think about the business, what’s working, what needs to evolve, and what it takes to keep moving forward. It’s really about continuous improvement.”