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novagirl

Beach Comber
Apr 26, 2010
37
0
Santa Rosa Beach
To all So Wal dog owners (and any one else interested), I am working on a plan to open a self serve dog wash house. I have been working on this almost 3 years now and I am on the verge of selling my home to finance this. Before I make that final leap (I have 3 generations of family that depend on me) I would appreciate some feedback. My idea is waist high tubs with everything needed to wash and dry your dog in comfort. "You clean the dog, We clean the mess!". Possibly if there is an interest I would later expand to dog daycare. So please take a moment and tell me if you would use a dog wash and/or dog daycare. Or if you wouldn't . Either way I would be very grateful for the info. This wanna be, first time, single woman, business owner THANKS you!!:wave: P.S. Any advice or thoughts are also welcome.
 
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scooterbug44

SoWal Expert
May 8, 2007
16,732
3,330
Sowal
What is the incentive/hook for me to bring my dog to your place, wash them myself, and pay you for it?

Is it mainly that I don't have to clean up the mess or are there more perks like you providing shampoo, clippers etc?

The Scooterhounds are very low maintenance (grooming wise at least) and either get hosed down in the yard/shower or get washed by pros when they get boarded at the kennel, so I may not be understanding your plan properly.
 

bepinkston

Beach Comber
Jul 23, 2009
11
3
up on the bay
I think this is a great idea.

I recently moved to sowal, but managed a pet store for 3 years prior, and before that managed a boarding kennel (Now I care for a different sort of boarder...I'm a high school teacher ;-).)

The perks that I've experienced have been just as you said: shampoo, brushes, dryers, nail clippers- all provided. I think the biggest perk, though, is being able to keep your house dry and hair free! My dog is gigantic and long-haired, so bathing him at home is such a hassle, not to mention getting him dry in a timely fashion! A proper groomer's dryer makes all the difference.

I'll support you!

I'm happy to chat/give advice/ideas/past experiences of my own if interested!

Best of luck!

Bobbi
 

Will B

Moderator
Jan 5, 2006
4,530
1,279
Atlanta, GA
If you are going to go with the big tubs, I would suggest having one of them full of flea dip solution. There used to be a place here in Atlanta that did that during Saturdays during the summer, and they were packed. It really drove the walk up business.
 

Sarah Moss

Beach Lover
Apr 5, 2006
217
27
Black Creek
Novagirl, I know you didn't ask for advice on selling your home but I think that is the worst mistake you could do...to invest (i'm guessing) your largest asset into a business that you are so unsure of you are asking on a message board. I am sorry if that sounds mean, but I don't know how else to say it.

As far as the dog wash, we have two dogs and if we were going to go to the trouble of driving them somewhere to get washed, we certainly wouldn't be doing the washing! That being said, we normally wash them outside at home. ;-)

Best of luck with it.
 

novagirl

Beach Comber
Apr 26, 2010
37
0
Santa Rosa Beach
Thank you all so much for your input! To answer the question of why you would come to my place. First of all the comfort of not having to bend down over your tub because I hate that when I'm washing my dog. It kills my back. Then there is the convenience of having everything provided with a variety of shampoos, ear and eye wash, nail clippers, tether to keep your dog from escaping from the tub(mine does that a lot), no dog hair clogging your drain, attached table for drying with a walk up ramp(no lifting),low heat dryers, and even bows and ribbons when your done! As far as the comparison to a groomer this would be much cheaper. According to size the most you would pay for a normal bath would be $21 & the least being $12. I do want to have a special clipping table for those who want to use it with all supplies necessary to do that. To Singingchicken, that is an excellent idea for a flea dip! That will definately go in the plan. To Snerd, I also have thought about offering to do the washing/drying , just that and no grooming, with a small fee added which would still make my prices considerably less than a grooming salon. I guess I'd have to say my prices would be my hook. Thanks again everyone and I'd love to see some more opinions!!!
 

wrobert

Beach Fanatic
Nov 21, 2007
4,134
575
61
DeFuniak Springs
www.defuniaksprings.com
To all So Wal dog owners (and any one else interested), I am working on a plan to open a self serve dog wash house. I have been working on this almost 3 years now and I am on the verge of selling my home to finance this. Before I make that final leap (I have 3 generations of family that depend on me) I would appreciate some feedback. My idea is waist high tubs with everything needed to wash and dry your dog in comfort. "You clean the dog, We clean the mess!". Possibly if there is an interest I would later expand to dog daycare. So please take a moment and tell me if you would use a dog wash and/or dog daycare. Or if you wouldn't . Either way I would be very grateful for the info. This wanna be, first time, single woman, business owner THANKS you!!:wave: P.S. Any advice or thoughts are also welcome.


There is one of these on Mary Ester Cut-Off. You should consider going over there and seeing how it is laid out. Never been in, just saw the signs.

Please make sure you check with Walton County Planning as to the suitability of your business at whatever location you are looking at. Nothing worse than seeing someone spend a lot of dollars starting something then they get hauled in front of the code board and are found to be violating the rules and are told to close down. I have seen that happen on more than one occasion. Because we do not have occupational taxes in Walton County, people sometimes think we do not have rules.
 

novagirl

Beach Comber
Apr 26, 2010
37
0
Santa Rosa Beach
There is one of these on Mary Ester Cut-Off. You should consider going over there and seeing how it is laid out. Never been in, just saw the signs.

Please make sure you check with Walton County Planning as to the suitability of your business at whatever location you are looking at. Nothing worse than seeing someone spend a lot of dollars starting something then they get hauled in front of the code board and are found to be violating the rules and are told to close down. I have seen that happen on more than one occasion. Because we do not have occupational taxes in Walton County, people sometimes think we do not have rules.
Yes you are right about Mary Esther. I have checked them out and I think they must be doing fairly well because they started a couple of years ago (maybe 3) and they are still there. And, yes I am going to check everything thoroughly. I've been working on this for some time and I have a fairly good idea of permits and such. But I am going to be very careful. Thanks for the heads up though!
 

heartbren

Beach Fanatic
Sep 6, 2009
769
18
67
Blue Mountain Beach
self serve dog wash

I thought this was a great idea and recently thought of it myself although i can't afford to get it going. I was in Texas for 5 months after Katrina (I am from New Orleans). I have a way to wash my dog easily there but I do not here. I have a small dog but he still needs a bath. In Texas a girl opened one of these and her place was like a revolving door. She had a lot of business. She appeared to be doing well. I think it is a great idea, but I also worry about you selling your home. If you believe in something bad enough and really want this perhaps it is worth the risk. I am a pet sitter here in SoWal and am trying to get my
business started. I had a booming business in New Orleans until the recession hit there. I moved here b/c I love it and am going to do the same thing. Perhaps I could help you and you could help me, getting the word out that is. My business is Heart Pet Sitting. I think as well as the big tub, maybe you should have a smaller one also for the small pets so they are not so intimidated by the size of the tub. Just a suggestion. If you care to talk to me my number is (850) 622-3352 and my name is Brenda. I wish you the best of luck and I think it may just work from what I/ve seen in Texas.

Thank you all so much for your input! To answer the question of why you would come to my place. First of all the comfort of not having to bend down over your tub because I hate that when I'm washing my dog. It kills my back. Then there is the convenience of having everything provided with a variety of shampoos, ear and eye wash, nail clippers, tether to keep your dog from escaping from the tub(mantine does that a lot), no dog hair clogging your drain, attached table for drying with a walk up ramp(no lifting),low heat dryers, and even bows and ribbons when your done! As far as the comparison to a groomer this would be much cheaper. According to size the most you would pay for a normal bath would be $21 & the least being $12. I do want to have a special clipping table for those who want to use it with all supplies necessary to do that. To Singingchicken, that is an excellent idea for a flea dip! That will definately go in the plan. To Snerd, I also have thought about offering to do the washing/drying , just that and no grooming, with a small fee added which would still make my prices considerably less than a grooming salon. I guess I'd have to say my prices would be my hook. Thanks again everyone and I'd love to see some more opinions!!!
 
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