Pet Sitting and Doggie Wash Business

terriberry

 Hello All!  I want to Start a pet sitting business and I also want to open up a Doggie Wash, where the pet owner can bathe their dogs instead of making a mess in their home.  The pet sitter is easy for me because I`ve worked as a pet-sitter for two years, but I would need help with  the other task.  Do I need to write out a business plan for both of these ventures? What kind of facility would I need to look for?  Any advise would be greatly appericated.
 
Thank you,
Teresa Sedillo

MattTurpin

You don`t actually require a business plan unless you`re asking for funding. Banks want to see one, and so do investors. If you`re funding this yourself, you don`t have to have one, but most books I`ve read suggest it`s a good idea. Write out the whole plan like you were going to ask for a lot of money to do it. Looking up a business plan model and finding all the information that goes into one before you start can only help. You`ll think of things you didn`t before. You`ll be forced to make changes to your mental plan, in favor of reality. This is what`s happened to me as I started my business plan. It`s more than a banking tool, it`s a good strategy to work from - a business constitution.
If you own a home, maybe you can get started cheap by working out of your house. It`ll be less expensive than owning two buildings. It`d also cut your cleaning in half, since you`d be cleaning your house when you clean your workplace, instead of cleaning one and going off to clean the other. If you`re not in a good location for it, I`d imagine a small building with the necessary plumbing on a busy street would be nice. Maybe you can find something on the primary work commute. If people can drop their dogs off on the way to work, that can`t be bad for you.

terriberry

  Thank you Matt for answering my questions, you are the only one that did.  I wish more people would take an interest in helping others as you did.  Thanks again.
 
 
Terriberry

WebJunky

dont the pet stores like petsmart offer these services? if they dont you might want to pitch to them to offer your services to their customers as a value ad.  i am sure they would be receptive to the idea seeing as they will be providing something of value to their customers. maybe you can even offer a 10% off for all customers sent by nearby pet stores?  you will have to go to the stores near where you live or plan to open up business.

terriberry

To Webjunky,
Petsmart provides grooming, but I want to open up a place where pet parents can bring their pets and bathe them.  If they want us to do it then we will provide that service.  As far a the pet sitting business I know I will have no problem with it.  I appericate your advise.  I don`t understand why people don`t find pet related services to be important.  Pets have needs just like humans do.  I hope we get more people to pay attention to animals needs and issues. 
 

MattTurpin

It`s a good idea, but there`s only one concern you might want to consider. Before the recession, there were businesses for everything. People would hire dog walkers, pet sitters, mobile pet care vans, and pretty much anything you can think of, not even pet related. Now, money is tight. People are getting rid of their housekeepers. They`re taking care of their own pets. People aren`t spending money on luxuries. I`m not saying don`t do it, but I do think you aught to really study the market. Ask around your area. See if people would use the service if it were available. If you don`t get the answers you want, try a richer neighborhood. There are services people can`t live without, like utilities and grocery stores, and there are luxury conveniences for those with extra money to spend. You need to find the people who fit in the latter, I think. Average people might not be able to afford special pet care.

elisa

I personally think it is a great idea. I use to hate giving my dog a bath at home. I had a huge Wiemer and hair would be everywhere. I was always throwing away towels, it was gross! I could use your water, your towels, your dryers, nail clippers etc. I think as long as it didn`t cost as much as taking them to a groomer, people would do it.
As for the building, this may cost setup wise, multiple water/drain locations, dryers would have to be set up in a different area (not near water or sink areas). Another cost would be insurance. I would worry about someone getting accidentally bitten, or falling cause of constant wet floors.
Good luck! I hope you go for it! It really sounds like a good business!

terriberry

Thank you Elisa for your feed back. 

MattThomas

To answer your first question, like Matt said, you don`t NEED one unless you are getting funding. Ultimately, it`s up to you--if you think you will get use out of it and continually refer to the plan, then do it. If you really are putting to together as a formality, but don`t plan to get any use out of it, don`t bother.
Some people just work better off of written plans than others do. It is really all about how you work. Some business owners write a plan, and all it does is delay them from getting to sales and generating revenue right away. If you do write a plan at this stage, do only as much as you need, and save any unnecessary details for later.