Increase
your profits
without
grooming one
extra dog
A Guide for Groomers Who Want to
Take Their Business to the Next Level
BY
L I S A M O R E T T I , L O R N A PA X T O N
AND KEVIN FISHER
INCREASE YOUR PROFITS WITHOUT GROOMING ONE EXTRA DOG
TA B L E O F C O N T E N T S
Introduction
1. Retail Sales
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Developing a boutique area
Select products & supply sources
Before placing your first order
Set retail prices & measure product profitability
Allocate space to products
Product quantity descisions
Visual merchandising
2. Now it’s time to sell
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21
Prescription pad selling
Training Employees
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3. Improving Retail Sales
23
Be easy to find
Get on the web
Ask your customers
Extras
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4. Going from Groomer to Canine Stylist
Atmosphere
Spa Treatments
Signature Treatments
Spa Treatment Room
New Client Orientation
Follow Up
Top 10 mistakes made by groomers
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30
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5. Conclusion
35
6. Resources
36
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INCREASE YOUR PROFITS WITHOUT GROOMING ONE EXTRA DOG
B
elieve it or not you’re in the perfect position to
experience double-digit growth. Look carefully and
you’ll see it first hand; $200 pet beds, diamond
studded collars, haute couture for every make and
model of dog; the luxury market for dogs is
exploding. Surely your profits should be exploding too? But you’re right, there are only so many
hours in the day and you can only groom so many
dogs. So how can you capitalize on this emerging
trend? Well, this guide will show you how to take
your business to the proverbial next level.
Every store, every location, every owner is unique
so there are no right and wrong answers, what
works in one location may not work in another but
we can point you in the right direction and suggest
some of the more important questions you’ll need
to answer before you invest in your business. If you
follow a few basic principles you can
Leverage your experience, provide service and support
• create an added source of cash flow by setto your customers and see your profits increase
ting up a retail/boutique area
• increase your average order size by repositioning your grooming
services as a canine spa treatments.
In the following pages, you’ll learn:
• how other groomers have succeeded
• how much merchandise you’ll need
• how much of an investment you’ll need to make
• how much floor space is required
• what are the bestsellers in the marketplace.
• how to market your products
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INCREASE YOUR PROFITS WITHOUT GROOMING ONE EXTRA DOG
1
R E TA I L S A L E S
It’s Not As Scary As You Think
If you’ve never done any retail sales, the prospect can be quite
daunting. After all, you’ve never considered yourself a sales
person…well, think again!
Camilla Vitale of Blue Rocket Sales, a San Francisco-based firm that
specializes in helping groomers establish upscale pet boutiques says,
“Groomers sell every day. Granted, it may not be merchandise, but selling yourself is selling all the same. Your customers are already spending
$50 to $100 on grooming. Since their wallet is open anyway, why not
add on other items? She says:
“You already offer a great service to your clients; products
are simply an extension of the services you offer – they are a
service too!”
Why make your client go to another pet store to do their
shopping? That’s lost money for you and an extra trip out for
them. Think of it this way, every time your customer goes
into PetCo or PetSmart and spends money, it’s money they
could have more easily spent with you! Do you really want
your customers buying inferior products at a large chain
store? They trust you with their dogs, why wouldn’t they
trust you to recommend products for their dogs? After all
you’re an expert, and one of the keys to successful sales
is to leverage your expertise. You’ve spent many
hours learning about, and caring for dogs and now
you can offer the benefit of that expertise to your customers.
The services you provide are just the beginning.
According to spa gurus you should be selling at least
one product for each treatment offered. For example,
dogs that are washed need to stay fresh—offer them
a doggie spray cologne. Dogs that have their teeth
One of the
keys to
successful
sales is to
leverage your
expertise.
You already offer a great
service to your clients
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INCREASE YOUR PROFITS WITHOUT GROOMING ONE EXTRA DOG
brushed need to maintain fresh breath (any owner will love you for
that)- sell them a breath spray.
Another common complaint from unsuccessful groomers is,
“I tried retailing, but the stuff just sat there. No one bought anything
so I gave up.” Camilla, who has had more than a dozen years of experience in the pet industry says that the problem is usually that the atmosphere wasn’t right.
“There wasn’t much merchandise so it didn’t make a statement, and
what was there wasn’t clean or well presented.”
According to Camilla your goal should be to establish a 50-50 retail
to service ratio.
“You don’t have to spend a fortune.” She says, “Start out small and
grow. As the profits come in then you can increase your retail space to
support retail capacity”
DEVELOPING A BOUTIQUE AREA
Create a mood for buying. You need to set the
stage for a shopping experience by stimulating the
senses. A few of the things you should focus on are:
Smell & Cleanliness. It’s understandable; many
groomer’s salons are smelly. But a smelly environment
doesn’t set the stage for buying. Most clients are ready
to get out ASAP. (If Macy’s smelled like your grooming
salon would you spend much time browsing?) Of all
the senses smell has the largest emotional component;
the sense of smell has the power to trigger memories
and desires. And smell can definitely affect a client’s
propensity to buy, or not to buy. (Besides, wouldn’t
Create a welcoming environment for
both you and you’re employees appreciate a more
your customers, make it a pleasure for
pleasant work environment?)
Your salon needs to be free of unpleasant odors. Try them to visit your store.
placing diffusers throughout the salon that emit essential oils into the
air. Check with your air conditioning/heating company, some offer a
charcoal air filtering system to reduce unpleasant aromas in the salon. If
that’s too expensive, make sure there is lots of ventilation.
Employee appearance. What message is staff sending to your customers? Is it one of professionalism? Granted, you can’t wear a suit and
groom dogs, but you can be neat and clean, especially if your interacting with customers on a regular basis.
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