LAKE TAHOE, Calif. – In January of 2023, Candice Wilmuth woke up in her Tahoe cabin, surprised to discover that she couldn’t access her work email.

Recalling the moment, she said, “I remember turning to my boyfriend and saying, ‘I think I was just laid off from my job,’ and he look[ed] at me and [said], ‘Isn’t that a good thing?'”

That positivity set the tone, transforming what had started as a scary, unexpected curveball into a rewarding, grounding experience.

After the dust settled, Wilmuth learned she was among the first people laid off at Google in their initial round of layoffs, when thousands of people across the country lost their jobs.

It was an abrasive change of pace after decades in the corporate world as an executive in Google’s small and medium business marketing department and, before that, as a strategy consultant for another global company.

“I have had this very intense, high achievement-oriented, high-stress, lots of travel, experience in the corporate world,” she said. “And I’ve led huge teams of over 30 people across the world.”

Yet in one day, her life went from 100 miles an hour to zero with no clear path ahead.

“I realized that it was the world telling me that it was time for a change,” Wilmuth says. “I looked at it like it was direction.”

She leaned into the slower pace, gave herself one month to do nothing and then started pulling together her goals.

“I spent most of 2023 thinking about that list and how to better myself and be the person I wanted to be outside of solely this corporate identity,” she said. “For the first time in my adult life, I wasn’t asking, ‘What’s the next step in my career?,’ I was asking, ‘What kind of life do I want to build?'” 

One of those items on the goals list was volunteering in the Tahoe community. Although she made Tahoe her full-time home only a few years ago, Wilmuth has been coming to the region since she was a toddler, spending summers at Fallen Leaf Lake and winters skiing at Alpine Meadows with her family.

Between volunteering for Keep Homewood Public and the Humane Society of Truckee-Tahoe, including fostering dogs, she became enwrapped in the Tahoe community and culture. It was not only healing but also set her on a path toward her next business pursuit: founding Tahoe Dog Co. in 2025, which offers Tahoe and dog-themed products for both dogs and humans.

“When I started making decisions based on what brought me joy personally,” she said, “instead of what looked good on a resume, everything started falling into place.”

During that same period, Wilmuth was also grieving the loss of her beloved dog Steven. Wilmuth said the experience reinforced how much dogs shape lives and communities, and also planted seeds for what would eventually become Tahoe Dog Co.

“Tahoe Dog Co. isn’t just about merchandise or products,” she said, “but the bigger idea is celebrating the dogs, people and places that make Tahoe special.”

With Tahoe Dog Co., Wilmuth continues to be involved in the community by sponsoring and hosting Snowfest events such as the Dog Pull and Dress Up Your Dog. The company also offers a sticker benefiting the Palisades Tahoe Avalanche Dog Team and a leash benefiting the Humane Society of Truckee-Tahoe. 

Now, looking back at what was once an uncertain time in her life, Wilmuth said, “I look at it as a gift.”

“For years, I thought success meant climbing the corporate ladder,” Wilmuth said. “Now I think success is building a life where I know my neighbors, spend time outside every day, volunteer in my community, and create something I’m genuinely proud of.”

After spending a lifetime returning to Tahoe before eventually making it her full-time home, she says Tahoe Dog Co. grew naturally from those values.

“The business isn’t separate from my life here—it’s a reflection of it.”

Tahoe Dog Co. is currently being featured at the North Tahoe Visitor Center in Tahoe City as the North Tahoe Chamber’s first vendor in its new Featured Vendor Program.  

As a launch event for the program and to celebrate Tahoe’s dog community, Wilmuth and the chamber are throwing a Tahoe Dog Co. Community Pack Party, inviting community dogs and their owners.

The event takes place Friday, July 17, from 4-5:30 p.m. at the Visitor Center in Tahoe City and includes mingling and a pack walk to the Truckee River.

For more information, visit tahoedogco.com/blogs/blog/packparty.