Stephanie Suganami, colloquially known as Steph Shep, is an actor, entrepreneur, and environmental advocate whose work bridges entertainment, impact, and design. She is the co-founder of LIL LUV DOG, a conscious pet care brand rooted in sustainability, clean formulation, and innovative design. Both on-screen and off, she’s driven by purpose—using storytelling, entrepreneurship, and activism to build a more thoughtful, connected world.
Dance taught me discipline early—showing up even when you’re tired, pushing through when no one’s watching. But it also gave me imagination. It was my first way of communicating before I had words. It gave me independece, too, because it was something I built for myself.
LA does that to you—it makes you realize there are hundreds of ways to be creative. I started meeting people who blurred the lines between art, fashion, business, and storytelling. I didn’t really plan to expand beyond dance; I was just in a discovery phase, wanting to absorb as much as I could in front of and behind the camera.
It showed me that leadership isn’t about being the loudest voice in the room—it’s about being the most present. When you’ve been in a support role, you learn to read the room, anticipate needs, and take initiative without being asked. Those lessons shaped how I show up now.
Honestly, it started with curiosity. I started paying attention to how everything’s linked- our choices, the planet, the system behind it all. And once you really see it, there’s no going back.
Because talking about our environment shouldn’t feel like homework. People connect to joy and hope, not shame. I wanted to make sustainability approachable—to create space for learning together, because I was on that journey, too.
It felt like coming home in a new way. Acting gave me space to feel again—to explore emotion and nuance the way I used to with movement. Dance was control; acting is surrender. It’s terrifying and liberating at the same time.
Letting go of perfection was brutal. I had to unlearn the need for precision, in a way. What came naturally was empathy—I love figuring out why people do what they do.
Honestly, it was kind of magical. Everyone on set showed up with so much intention—no ego, just collaboration. Watching these incredible actors work made me want to rise to the moment.
Definitely not a straight line—more like a scenic ride with a few wrong turns that ended up being right. Every chapter’s been a preparation for the next one. I didn’t always see the pattern, but now it feels like it was all leading somewhere on purpose.
Betting on myself has been the recurring theme. Every major turn I’ve taken has pushed me completely out of my comfort zone. I’ve learned that growth usually lives right next to fear. Every big step started with not knowing what I was doing, just doing it anyway. Betting on myself has been the through-line, and the thing I’m still learning to trust most.
It started with my dog, Binx. I’m obsessed with giving him the best care possible—from what he eats to what I put on his tiny, very cute body. After working adjacent to clean beauty for years, I saw how much progress had been made in reformulating for safety and transparency and how little of that existed in pet care. The category just felt overlooked. Lil Luv Dog was born out of wanting to bring that same standard of innovation, design, and integrity to products for our pets.
Honestly, the best part is seeing it come to life. We’re not just making “another pet product,” we’re filling a real gap in a category that hasn’t evolved in decades. Everything about Lil Luv Dog has intention behind it, and watching that turn into something tangible—a real product, a real brand—is really cool.
Stay curious and stay kind. Both will take you farther than talent or timing ever could.
Oh gosh, I’d like to think she’d say, “I knew you could.”
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