Developing a Successful Pet Grooming Career

Even if you have been grooming for year, please read this section!

Reason being, if you're looking for help for your grooming career or business, it could be because grooming does not fit your lifestyle needs and wants regardless of how much you enjoy it. There are a lot of pros and cons of this career path, but the main battle is finding out if aligns with your mental, physical, and lifestyle needs and wants. A lot of people just dive right into a job without doing much research on it, which is totally fine, for some jobs. This is not one of them. 

• Understanding the Pay Structure: It is unlikely you will find a grooming salon that will pay you hourly unless you opt to be a bather or receptionist. They generally tell you they pay an hourly wage between $10-$15 (hasn't changed in over 20 years), but you will get a commission pay on all the pets you groom. What they don't tell you, is that you only get the commission pay if you meet their sales quota every single day. It could be a year or more before you start to see that commission if you are in training to be a groomer. The salons' sales quotas have continually increased over the years, which has required groomers to work as fast as they can to groom as many pets in a day as they can without any consideration for the pets mental and physical well-being during the grooming process. One-on-one grooming and mobile grooming have been the main methods developed to focus on well-being verse numbers and sales. This type of pay structure hasn't changed for the entire 20 years I've spent in the industry, which is a real shame, and the reason so many business owners are now constantly complaining about not being able to find groomers and not being able to get them to stay. They refuse to acknowledge the pay issue. Only the speed groomers are the ones who make a lot of money this way when working for someone else. You never get a raise in this industry. You only make more money when the business increases it's grooming prices, which increases your commission pay, if you are able to get it. Yes, you get tips, sometimes a lot, but no one should be working for tips. Everyone should be able to make a livable wage.

• Understanding the Atmosphere: It will be different in every salon, but know there are many that have a competitive culture. Many groomers find themselves competing against their own peers to get clients and keep them (they are people, not possessions) to stay busy and support themselves due to the pay structure. Because salons require you to groom more pets than some people can handle in a day and get them done as fast as possible, it is extremely high-paced, which can be very stressful for people who like to take their time, be very detailed, get to know the pet and make relations with the customers. This industry and the modern world we live in today, has caused clients to believe that grooming is a quick and easy process, so they are always calling or coming into the salon to ask if their pet is ready yet. This is not how every salon operates, but I had worked in many different kinds and they all expected me to work like a speed groomer, which I wasn't capable of. I was only able to take my time and focus on the pets' well-being when I worked for myself. Some clients would get impatient, but it was very rare, and because I started as house-call, they got to see first-hand how long and tedious the process truly was, especially if they had a pet with behavior difficulties.

• Understanding the Commitment: It's very rare that a salon will hire you as a part-time groomer. I really don't understand why. I think it makes more sense to have more part-time workers that you can ask to come in when someone calls out sick than mostly full-time groomers. There has been a shift in some salons being open only Monday through Friday, but the majority still tell you that you are required to work weekends and are not allowed to take time off during the holidays. Pretty fucked up if you ask me. I don't know why anyone would think that sounds like the perfect job for them. If someone calls out sick, the business rarely calls the clients to tell them they have to reschedule their pets' grooming appointment that was on the sick persons schedule for the day. They usually pawn these clients off on other groomers that already have a full schedule, which means they will be working over-time. I worked over-time a lot, like at least once a week, and not always because someone called out sick. When I first started grooming, salons were open from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. at night, and you couldn't leave the salon until all pet owners picked up their pets. The hours have changed considerably, but corporate salons are still open to 9 p.m. + at night. Working for myself was the only way I could a regular 9 to 5 hour day. 

• The Metal and Physical Requirements: Some people thrive on the busy atmosphere and having something to do all the time. Some people work better with their hands because this is a very creative career. It has become even more creative over the last decade than ever. This job can definitely feed your artistic creative style, if the salon you work for allows it. I was only able to practice artistic and creative grooming when I worked for myself. I did bring some creative grooming styles to the last two salons I worked at, but I couldn't do it often because those styles required more time and work than shaving all the pets down short. That meant I couldn't groom enough pets in a day to meet my quotas to get commission pay, or I had to work a lot of overtime to get it. If you are not good with people, this is not a good fit for you unless there is someone else who handles the client interaction. Generally, every groomer has to talk to their client, figure out what grooming style the client wants, do all the paperwork involved with all of their clients for the day, and take phone calls throughout the day, and talk to random people that walk in to ask questions. Most people say they want to work an animal related job because they don't have to work with people, this job requires a lot of human communication skills in order get clients and make sure they are happy enough that they will keep coming back. Clients can complain a lot. If you are not good with conflict and do not know how to de-escalate an angry customer, you will be stressed out all the time. This is a very physical demanding job. No one realizes just how much physical work it requires until their first day of actually working on the job. A lot of groomers have to quit after only a few years due to carpal tunnel related issues, and the most common, back pain. I could sell the shit out of any grooming package and add-on services to clients, but I did not know how to handle conflict. The pain in my back became so severe that I ended up in the emergency room too many times, even after I was placed on a 25 lbs pet limit so I wouldn't have to lift the big heavy dogs anymore. Even if you can handle clients and consider yourself strong and able, you will need to find time for yourself to decompress mentally and physically, and you will have to step-up your game when it comes to heavy lifting at the gym.