CHECK IT OUT, ISSUE #1

HOT OFF THE PRESSES...

Please excuse us as we make some changes to the website. Trying to make things easier to navigate & organized. 

July 31st, 2017

The Professional Grooming Spa or Salon. 

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We felt it fitting after getting the website done, to have the first issue of THE PAWS-A-TIVE NOTE be about grooming. 

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So, what does it mean to be a groomer & what makes a person choose this profession? I suppose it's different for each person. But I think it's safe to say, in general, those of us who do chooses grooming as a profession are animal lovers. Because let's face it, this isn't some "let's get dressed up fancy and go to the office" type of work. It's a job that not a lot of people choose to do for several reasons.  It is dangerous, because it carries the risk of being bitten daily in the course of your work. It is a dirty job, trust me when I say that by the end of the day you will stink from it (ever smelled a dog's anals?). You surely don't want to go out in public to a store or someplace after work in the same clothes. In fact, being a dog groomer was once featured on the Discovery channels reality TV show Dirty Jobs, hosted by Mike Rowe. It's very hard work, physically it's hard on your back and joints. Mentally it's hard dealing with a multitude of different dogs/cats, situations, schedules and people. It's not a job your going to get rich at quickly. It means ALWAYS striving to give the best customer service you can. It means being able to have a vision for each and every pet that comes through our doors, and seeing that vision though to bring our the beauty in each of them through grooming. 

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Yet with all that, for those of us who have dedicated ourselves to the craft, we don't want to be doing anything else! We have a smile on our face everyday, knowing we are making a difference to enhance the lives of our clients & their fur babies! I just love to see a dog prance after they've been groomed, you just know they feel good! That old saying "If you love what you do, you'll never work a day in your life" comes to mind. 

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For me, it's also a way for me to express my creative side a bit. I can't dance, or sing, or draw. I don't play any musical instruments either. I just love it when a client says you can do whatever you think is best! I do this sometimes with my hair stylist, and she loves it when I tell her to put her mad skills to work and do "whatever"! My hair grows fast, so sometimes I let it grow out so I can donate it to charity (they make woman's hair pieces for woman with health issues). But I let her choose the cut & style. 

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So what does it take to be a good groomer? It takes A LOT! For me, it meant that even though I was experienced and had worked with an older very experienced groomer (who was retiring then) I chose to go to school and become a certified groomer. The school I attended is a state accredited grooming school program. Did I have to do this? No, I didn't. It may surprise you to know that it isn't required, anybody can open a shop or say they are a groomer. Of course if they aren't good, or something bad happens, word tends to spread very quickly. For myself, I felt I wanted that certification. I wanted to make sure I had a complete and well rounded education with exposure to ALL aspects of grooming in a structured program. I wanted more experienced guidance from a certified master groomer. And I want our clients to know that by being certified, you can be assured that your pet is in capable hands and that I am a professional. I'm proud to say I'm a certified professional pet groomer! And it wasn't cheap to do the schooling either, but I feel it was well worth it!

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So what does it take to open & run a successful grooming business? Well, even more! To start with, I personally feel you should be certified & experienced before considering it. It takes tons of planning. You have to find the right location & land lord to deal with, which is harder than you think. You may have found what seems like the perfect spot, but now you have to deal with zoning stuff. Which means permits that have application fees and dealing with city/state governments. Ok, so now let's say you have the ok for zoning compliance to put your business in said location. If you haven't signed a lease agreement yet, you want to get that buttoned up, which again means more $ going out. You need to be careful though, just a word of caution, just because you have zoning compliance approval to put the business there does NOT mean you will be open quickly! Rarely will you find a spot that requires no renovations, which will require more permits & $. You will most often need to work with a licensed contractor/architect/ and-or an engineer to do the plans/work too. You will have to submit a plan for the work to the city for approval before you do anything! And you should make sure your covered in your lease agreement that it's contingent on getting your occupancy permit/business license. Just remember that your well thought out plans could be denied for ANY reason and it could take months of back and forth to get approval! 

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In our case we had to fight to get approval, the city forced us to hire an engineer! In the end WE had to prove to them that the 10k+ air handling system they were trying to force us to put in wasn't needed/required per state codes! Forcing us to do that would have meant NOT opening! They delayed us for months! They also have a lists of licensed by the city contractors, and force you to use somebody on their lists! In the end, thanks to the help of people at the state level, we were able to get things put through. But every time they do a denial and you submit something, each side has 30 days to respond to it, so you can see how it takes time.

Believe it or not, we also had issues with the basic measurements of our space! When we submitted our plan drawings, we took exact measurements. Others who had the space before us just did estimates. And there was enough discrepancy between them that the city thought we were doing major stuff like moving walls. stairwells, putting built-in seating...so that's where they wouldn't believe us and forced us to consult an engineer for certified drawings & the air handling system! Guess what? My measurements were spot on!

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We also had issues with our first contractor, and were forced to hire a new one. Do not EVER pay a contractor all the money up front! We didn't. In our case what was a contracted original time frame to have work completed in 2 weeks, stretched into 2 months! I guess other jobs paid more so we got pushed to the back burner. The reason we went with him is because we had known him for 10 yrs, and he does good work! 

It was all just extremely frustrating to have your timelines blown away, when all you want to do is get open & be grooming! Originally we wanted to be open in April, by the time all inspections were done, it was July!

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Don't forget you'll need business insurance, an accountant, and an attorney. 

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So it takes several thousand of dollars invested in quality equipment & supplies too. In our case we had been gathering equipment for years as we knew we wanted to do this. Well, as luck would have it, we had a break-in. And much of our stuff was stolen or destroyed! So that all had to be replaced. 

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If you were able to, hopefully you've built up a following of clients before you opened. So now your open. You have probably invested 10- 20 thousand at this point. Now you have to think about making future rent, utilities, restocking supplies and restocking broken equipment. One of the very first dogs we did, broke 3 pieces of equipment! Needless to say he was a bit of a handful. 

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You can forget having any actual salary for several years too. Everything that you take in will be used to pay future expenses and pay off all the start up costs. 

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Every aspect of our spa & policies has been geared toward the safety & comfort of your pet! We always want to deliver stellar customer service!

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You have a choice where you take your beloved furry family member to get groomed. We truly care about each and every single one of our clients. Your not just a number with us. So even if you don't come to us, I ask that you please make sure to take your fur babies to somebody who is certified! You will be helping to ensure their safety & well being!

So, I could go on, but I think you get the gist of it. As I said, we don't do this to get rich quickly. We do it because we love it! Hope to see you soon!