Are you considering adding dog grooming to your doggie daycare? That could be a strategic business move. After all, when your clients trust you with their pups, they tend to want a one-stop service.

In fact, you might be mapping out a dog groomer business plan in response to your customer requests. After all, it's always nice to expand your profit center with new services. One pet resort owner I spoke with is doing exactly that. She said her clients kept asking her for dog grooming services, so she decided to carve out space for a salon within her doggy daycare. 

Of course, adding a grooming service does require a new framework for your business. You'll need a dog grooming business plan that helps you spot any potential holes and prepare for a successful expansion.

Your Dog Groomer Business Plan Basics

If you're already running a thriving doggie daycare business, then you have a built-in customer base. You can extend your existing brand to include the grooming side and concentrate on your build-out, hiring, and spreading the word of your expansion.

Yet, every business plan requires you to think about everything from physical space to how to use pet-care management software to simplify your business. 

Some of this you may have already considered. Or, not. Here's a quick review. 

1. Market Research

Every business plan for dog grooming starts with market research. What's the competition like in your area? Some groomers specialize in small dogs; others focus on excellent customer service or run mobile grooming vans. How do you want people to remember you?

Here are a few questions to consider.  

• How many other groomers are in the area?
• How long have they been in business?
• What's their reputation?
• Do they have specialties?
• What will set your dog grooming business apart? Will you have a mobile grooming division? Or, maybe you'll only accept current clients. 

If you already have a pet care business and want to limit your grooming to existing clients, that has its benefits. For example, you already know the dogs and their temperaments (and their humans.)

2. Products and Services

There are many ways to slice and dice the dog grooming difference-maker. For example, some groomers only use the highest quality pup shampoos and other grooming products. Using products free of known cancer-causing ingredients is worth sharing with your customers.

You can also use your services to set your grooming salon apart.  

• Will you offer self-serve dog washing?
• Will you offer full-service dog washing
• Do you intend to have a retail area with leashes, dog toys, and specialty products?
• Will you offer dematting services for tangled fur or specialize in doodle cuts?  

Again, look to the other area groomers and find something they're not offering.

3. Who's Your Ideal Dog?

If you have a doggie daycare business, you might choose to limit your grooming appointments to existing clients. After all, that cuts down the client onboarding and "get to know you" time both for the human and the canine.

4. Processes 

When you think of opening a grooming salon, do you want to start small with one part-time groomer, or do you want to do a full build-out with multiple groomers so you can operate full-time?

Will you have a greeter or a bather? What about a receptionist? How will people book appointments? How will they pay? Dog groomers software can help you manage the scheduling, communications, and payments side right from your dog grooming app. 

5. Space 

If you already have an area you can convert to a dog grooming salon, then look at it with the eye of adding bathtubs, grooming tables, and any other big furniture items you'll need. How will you handle the traffic flow? Will you have room for the dogs within the salon area, or will they hang out in a private daycare area after their salon visit?

A contractor can walk the space with you and help you plan the layout, costs, and timetable.  

6. Startup and Operational Costs

Every seasoned business owner knows she has to figure out her costs. The startup costs include build-outs, equipment, hiring, initial marketing/advertising, and licenses/insurance. Then there are the ongoing operational costs.

The operational costs, of course, are what you expect the salon to cost regularly, and you can break it into annual, monthly, weekly, and daily expenses. For example, your business plan will include rent/mortgage payments, staffing, equipment, insurance, supplies, software, utilities, marketing, etc.  

You can make a list and, initially, do a little back-of-the-envelope math to give yourself a rough idea. It's a good idea to add 15-20% to what you "think" it'll cost because there are always unforeseen expenses. Besides the location/build-out, financing grooming tables and other equipment, are likely to be the bulk of your startup costs.

7. Pricing

Once you've mapped out your startup and operational costs, you can create a pricing structure. Will you take out a business loan to renovate an existing space? How much will the equipment cost? How much will you pay your groomers? What about additional help like a greeter or dog bather?

You can let your imagination run wild. Create a vision of the type of dog grooming salon you want and then take a couple of days to research the costs and put together a rough startup cost list. You can adjust your dog groomer business plans to fit your existing budget if necessary.

Once you have an idea of your costs, you can address your pricing. Make sure you make it high enough, so you have a profit! 

8. Insurance / Legal

Do you need to make changes to any business licensing for your area? Do you need to expand your current insurance to cover the grooming business?

Both insurance and legal requirements vary around the country so you'll need to talk to reliable representatives who understand your area.  

9. Advertising and Marketing

If you already have a doggie daycare business, you have a built-in customer base. You can let your existing customers know about the new addition, and you may be booked up within a few weeks.

Sounds great, right?  

It is great. Yet, you still need to plan your marketing blitz. Through email newsletters, you can share photos and videos of your future grooming area with your current customers. Then, publish this content on social media. Regular updates build community and let people experience the transformation of your space, and build anticipation when you share the behind-the-scenes peeks.

The right pet-care management software makes it easy to communicate with your customers, share on social media, and accept appointments.  

10. Automate, Automate, Automate, with Pet-Business Management Software

There was a time when pet professionals ran their businesses with index cards for client files, a physical calendar for appointments, and a pen. It's a clunky way to manage things in the modern world. There's a lot of room for error -- ever forget an appointment?

Fortunately, there's easy-to-use business management software to streamline your business processes. You can manage appointment booking, client communication, reputation management, social media marketing, and more right from your phone.

In Summary

Congratulations on your new dog grooming business! When you create your dog grooming business plan, you'll set yourself up for success. You'll develop a realistic timeline for your grand opening, get your finances in order, and hire staff if needed. You'll also spot potential challenges ahead of time and can make a plan to resolve them. As you know, sometimes you have to go over, around, or through obstacles to achieve your goals.

Whether you're expanding on an existing doggie daycare business or starting from scratch, there's a lot to plan and to look forward to in the coming months. You can start on the right foot and use this pet-care management software to simplify your business processes and run your business from your phone.