This Info Menu is Sponsored by:

Floor Plan Considerations

Your floor plan must be designed to fulfill all of the objectives of your operation. Indeed, your floor plan communicates the importance you place on client relations when you plan a spacious and comfortable client reception department. Your concern for preventing loose pets accidentally escaping out the front door must be evident. Read Madeline's description above for more ideas.

We do not like pet grooming businesses that seem to hide the entire grooming operation in "back rooms." At least the finish trimming area should be visible to pet owners in the reception area. If you are the owner and trimmer, your table should be the closest one to the client reception area. That way you can acknowledge clients even when the receptionist handles the entire client transaction for you. To save space, caging units that are stacked three levels high work best.

The noisiest area is the bathing department, and it best belongs at the rear. Plumbing can be a costly improvement, so the bathing department must also be placed where it works best with the present plumbing system and water heater.

Don't permanently block natural lighting coming in through windows. You may need shades or blinds when the sun is shining directly in, but natural lighting adds a nice ambience, and helps pet groomers to see their fine work.

The Manager's Office should be near the reception department. An office with glass-walls or windows allows the manager to keep an eye on more of the operation while working at their desk.

Lighting Considerations

Lighting is very important. Beauty salons often have very fine lighting systems for their hair designers. First, there should be natural lighting wherever possible. Second, there should be overall lighting from all-spectrum or warm fluorescent systems. Third, there should be spot lighting surrounding the pet groomer's workstation to prevent shadows. In this way, the pet groomer can better see their styling. Don't overlook lighting.

If you are building out a new space, be sure to plan the electrical needs across the ceiling where spotlights will be dropped onto each groomer workstation.

Caging

Our Snyder Mfg. Co. stainless steel cages are nearly 40 years old and work and look almost look like new. There are many other manufacturers of cages, and you can start your search by going to PetGroomer.com's Grooming Products A to Z. You will find not only product info but leads to many online and mail order suppliers.

Potty-Walk Area

Pet owners love a potty-walk area. Most pet owners will conveniently walk the pet in your potty-walk area before they deliver their pet to you in the client reception area. What a great convenience for you. On their way out, pet owners walk their pets before putting them in their car. If you look closely at the photograph above of Madeline's Pet Grooming Salon and Institute of Pet Grooming, you will see a "Pet-A-Potty" walk area for pets on the far right.

Michelle, the present owner of Madeline's, provides clients with Pet Mitts (a trade name product) on a roll dispenser at the Pet-A-Potty. You put your hand in the plastic glove, pick-up the solid pet waster, then remove the glove turning it inside-out. Voila! The pet waste is sealed inside the removed glove, and easily disposed of. We bought about a thousand of these in one order and the price was less than ten cents each. A bargain for the convenience. Not all clients will pick-up after their pets, but many will and again, that's a great convenience for you.

There is a supplier of a special ground soil that resembles vermiculite (plant soil additive). It is being used commonly in public parks with a pet walk area. We'll try to get the product name for you.

It is essential that you clean your potty-walk area at the beginning and end of each day, and as needed during the day. If a pet misses the potty-walk area, sterilize the soiled cement or wall area. Urine stains concrete and paint very quickly, and the stains are difficult to remove, and unsightly. If you are in a strip-center type building with neighbor businesses, you can bet on having problems with them if pets being walked to the parking area soil the front of their stores. It will happen, you've probably seen this in a shopping center with a pet grooming business. Be vigilant in preventing this problem by designating where pet owners can walk their pets, and ask them to assist you by using only that area.

Even more good advice continues on the next page.