|
With the contributions of new
educational providers the number of
grooming-related trade shows,
seminars, workshops, schools,
multimedia products and Internet
websites is at a historical high. We
believe the growth will continue,
even explode, in the next 10 years.
The most significant factor is
likely to be the use of Internet
related technology to create even
more common ground among groomers
and business owners worldwide.
Grooming prior to the 1980's was different than
today's industry. For one thing, opening a grooming business involved
a significant amount of trial and error without management tools
and guidance specific to grooming. There
were no books on the business side of grooming until the
late 1980's, and management consultants were even more rare than
today. Schools of grooming were more scarce than today. It may be
difficult to for career seekers to find an apprenticeship today,
but it was far more so before the 1990's. In fact, there were
thousands of career seekers that simply did not enter the
industry because of the lack of educational opportunities and
therein, a lack of self-confidence that their venture would meet
success.
In the era of the 1950's and 1960's,
grooming was evolving from a long
history of "doggie barbershops" with harsh working
conditions for both pet and groomer. Without air conditioning
grooming shops were more like "sweatshops."
"Dips" were often foul smelling and all natural products
rare. Tools and equipment were limited to a few models, and many of today's modern equipment simply
didn't exist. Grooming salons with 1,000 or more
regular clients were very rare even though the pet population was
adequate in metropolitan areas. Owning and operating a stand alone grooming business was very unique
and large numbers of groomers instead worked for kennels, pet
stores and veterinarians.
Technology sparked the grooming
industry into record expansion in the 1990's. New inventions
modernized grooming tools and equipment, and entirely new
equipment and pet care products introduced new ways to groom pets.
All natural products became the norm. Using the word
"dip" became passé. Mobile grooming vans became more
populous and far more advanced technologically.
Perhaps the most unique change was the new availability of
a vast amount of information. The "computer chip"
marked the advent of an information age, and pet grooming was not
left out. For the first time in the history of grooming, books by
leading business people in the industry started to appear as the
90's began, such as From Problems to Profits
- 1989 edition and The Art and Business of
Grooming. Trade
shows for groomers expanded with more speakers and educational
programs, and the topic of vocational
licensing resurfaced. More and more information was being disseminated. As a result,
the interest of the retail sector pet industry in grooming became
more and more aggressive. The early advent of
grooming web sites on the Internet between 1995-1997 sent a
message to tens of thousands of new career seekers, "Information
is now available to give you more confidence in a career as a
groomer and business owner!"
We have personally talked to a few
thousand career seekers because of our Internet presence. They
were nothing less than thrilled at finally having a career
counselor to talk
to about opportunities in grooming. If there wasn't a
school in their area, or a helpful groomer, how would they know
about grooming trade magazines, career planning, industry events
and educational opportunities? As a result, PetGroomer.com and
other grooming websites have encouraged thousands of new groomers
to enter the industry since the mid-1990's. The number of grooming
businesses in the U.S. alone increased by approximately 7,500 in
the 1990's. Is knowledge power? Is information power? You bet it
is!
In 1995 (before PetGroomer.com made
its debut), we
had another website solely focused Madson Group grooming business books,
business
forms, business plan writing services and management consultation
for grooming business owners. To our surprise we discovered
that 80% of our website traffic was career seekers and 20% groomers. Large numbers of
groomers were simply not on the Internet yet. However, thousands
of grooming career seekers
were sitting in large numbers at their jobs which came with an
Internet-capable computer, and they were occasionally searching
"pet grooming" on the Internet.
As our surveys
indicate, every day there are thousands of career seekers dreaming of
becoming a groomer and/or business owner. They sift day-after-day
through our and other's published grooming information working
diligently toward making their dreams a reality. Before the
Internet there was no such virtual library, and the library of
grooming industry information is growing daily! For the first time
in the history of grooming, we are seeing large numbers of more
informed persons entering the industry. Yes, they may be less
skilled as today's experienced groomers in the art of grooming,
but they are often far more informed about the industry as a
result of their research, and they want more!
We sell more copies of our business
book on grooming today than ever. In 1999, we sold more copies
than the previous 5 years combined and that trend continues today! These are informed career
seekers, and for us it is a revelation since for years surveys
have shown that most groomers and grooming business AVOID talking
about the business side of grooming. Today's informed career
seekers will never fall into the common traps of running their
businesses like everyone else, repeating the ways of the past and
suffering chronic labor shortages, chronic personnel problems and
those that day are more likely to go back and re-learn how to
eliminate these problems with modern management.
That's why we went "from
problems to profits" and that means more than money. We had
an ongoing "state of well-being"
in return for our exemplary service we
provided to tens of thousands of pet
owners and their beloved pets. You can too! Everyone can! An
educated industry creates the opportunity for well-being for all
its members. You just have to do the initial work to learn how to
manage a career and business like other professions do, and match
that with you art of grooming and humane pet care.
As described above, career seekers are entering a
vastly different industry in the new millennium. New
educational opportunities and the availability of information is saving them years of trial and error
in order to develop a more prosperous career as a groomer and/or
business owner. Yes, there are groomers graduating from grooming
school and opening new businesses that zoom to 500 to 1,500
clients in less than a year (even in rural areas). Yes, there are
groomers that within a few years of entering the industry grow a state-of-the-art, humane pet care business
earn annual net personal incomes from these businesses up to $100,000. Yes, there
are veteran grooming business owners learning how to groom less,
and manage more, without losing personal income. Yes, there are
more and more grooming business owners turning their businesses
into schools and helping others. Yes, there are groomers learning
to better manage productivity and cost-efficiency to the point
that they can qualify to purchase a commercial building for their
grooming business, and others that are expanding what started out as a
grooming shop into a full-service pet care center and kennel.
We know them. We help them with business
services and most of all, we honor them. Every groomer and
business owner should. Extraordinary groomers and business owners
effectively destroy the stereotypical image of grooming
businesses, and introduce the public to new concepts that clearly
demonstrate the extraordinary benefit of groomers and grooming
businesses to every community. For everyone in the industry this means more respect for the profession of grooming,
and a methodology to justify better service fees from the public.
This Next Generation section is
our way of disseminating more information to continue the advancement of
today's grooming industry. If you want to contribute your
assistance to the industry we will publish your article in our
library, of if you have a helpful website, let
us know and we will recommend your link.
Here we will share stories of groomers
and business owners we know and work with, including their small and large successes.
The players are real, and they are both career seekers and
advanced groomers and/or business owners. Their true stories are a
clear indication, indeed proof-positive, of what open-minded
people can become in the pet grooming industry when they have the
motivation to learn and apply knowledge. They know how to create a
reputation for artistic, humane and accommodating pet care,
financial prosperity for owners, management and staff, pleasant
working conditions and long term careers without debilitating
their bodies. They are the truth of the new grooming industry
coming in this new millennium; they are the next generation.
You have exciting reading ahead of
you.
Continued on the next page > > >
|
