Aimee Gilbreath was born and raised in Arizona. As a child, there wasn’t a pet she didn’t have. Interested in all species from snakes, to dogs and cats, to horses and goats, Aimee’s first career aspiration was to become a veterinarian.
Aimee received a full scholarship to attend the University of Arizona, where she earned her B.S. in Molecular and Cellular Biology, graduating summa cum laude in 1996. Deciding against pursuing medical school, she began a career in biotechnology and was hired by Motorola Corporation’s R&D division. Aimee was the third member of a team recruited to start a biotechnology research program with the goal to develop a biochip device for use in personalized medicine.
After spending four years in the laboratory researching single nucleotide polymorphisms, Aimee returned to school and earned her MBA at Stanford University. Upon graduation in 2002 she was hired by The Boston Consulting Group (BCG), a management strategy consulting firm that works with Fortune 500 companies to solve complex business issues. Aimee started in the firm’s Chicago office before transferring to Los Angeles where she was promoted to Principal in late 2006. During her five and a half years working for BCG Aimee served clients in the Health Care and Consumer Goods industries with an emphasis on mergers and acquisitions.
In an effort to introduce balance and service into her busy business career Aimee began volunteering for a local animal rescue group when she moved to Los Angeles in 2004. This was her introduction to the issues of pet overpopulation and shelter euthanasia. And, this was where Aimee fell in love with one of the most popular yet misunderstood breeds of dog, the pit bull. She eventually adopted a “pittie” of her own – Rufus – who is now four years old.
Rufus inspired Aimee to return to her first love – animals – and led her to take the position she holds today. In March 2008, Aimee joined Found Animals as the Executive Director and first employee. Now, rather than tackling post merger integrations she is managing a social entrepreneurship startup and applying her business skills to the creation and development of sustainable business models within animal welfare. “I have been blessed with the opportunity to use my business training and skills to tackle the tragedy of pet overpopulation. It's incredibly gratifying to know that our work makes a difference for pets and their people.”
Aimee lives in Los Angeles with her “pittie” Rufus. She enjoys scuba diving and world travel and is an aspiring cook. When she’s not hard at work for Found Animals you will find her strolling the beach with Rufus, testing her latest culinary creation on friends, or exploring Los Angeles and all that it has to offer.
