Shop Manager

[modernjonah]

Hey friends, I am new to grooming. I've run an indie pet shop for about 5 years. We have just recently opened grooming and are about 4 months into it. I currently have one PT bather and one FT groomer. We are adding a second FT groomer to our team this week.

What are things your manager does to support you? How can I make work better for them? I am not in charge of pay, but I would like to be supportive of my staff while setting healthy boundaries. I am a super people-y person, and I think the age difference has me struggling a little bit (which is totally ok!) Think Millennial and Gen Zs

Current conditions:

-Bather works about 20 hours a week, and we hope to get more hours as the business expands. The bather will step in and watch the storefront while I run shop-related errands, or if I need personal time off. So, they are trained for the retail system as well.

-Groomer works full time, approx. 35 hours. Basically, when they finish their last dog of the day, they leave. They average 4-6 dogs a day. Days with more dogs are usually small 10lb or under. 4 large dogs to a day.

I do step in a couple times a week to help bathe or dry dogs as needed. I do most of the cleaning, i.e, cleaning stalls, wash tubs, laundry. I also tend to buy lunch a couple times a month. I've got a fridge stocked with some foods and drinks for everyone. It's just currently us three (soon 4) and I want a happy work environment.

 

[torie]

@modernjonah Communication is key for sure! Make sure your bathers and groomers are comfortable with their workload, customers, and setup. If not: see how you, a new hire, or some nice tools can help!

A second bather should be a priority once the newest groomer settles in. Higher volume salons often have bathers come in to start groomers baths so the groomer can start as soon as they get in, it tends to be more time efficient though the bather is not always paid well in that setup.

At my salon we are implementing bathing sheets at drop off for clients to fill out with our shampoos sprays and add ons with prices and what type of groom they would like, using listed examples and photos. Our front end people are not well versed in bathing/grooming so I would make sure everyone on your staff is kept up to speed on whatever ways they would need to contribute (I.E checking a groom dog in)

With that being said I would also suggest getting someone competent in grooming to run the front end as personally I find it stressful to be split between two ‘jobs’ in a shift. If you do that, you could then delegate spa cleaning to the bather so they can stay in that space and still be working.

This is all coming from a fairly corporate kennel/play/training/grooming facility so yours may be run differently

 

[matthias]

@modernjonah Pay them for their time. The workers are the ones killing their bodies while you enjoy the business

 

[modernjonah]

@matthias I'm not the owner.