Dog Grooming Success Stories

Laura Abrams : Furry Tails Dog Grooming Salon

Kaye fodden : K's K9 Kutz

After working in an office environment for over 30 years, I decided I needed a change.  I became interested in dog grooming after my own dog was groomed by a local dog groomer, realising it wasn’t the best cut, started to look into dog grooming courses.  I choose Anrich because I was impressed by their training methods, the set up and the environment.  You were hands on from day 2 and every day for 5 weeks, I worked on a variety of breeds all with different styles.  In addition, Anrich taught me how to set up my own business, build a web site, advertise, clean and maintain my equipment, first aid on a dog and general health checks to look out for whilst grooming the dog.  This course gave me the knowledge and confidence I needed to start my own business, the girls are always there at the end of the phone, to help and advice even when I had finished my course. 

Even though I am a single parent and had left the security of a full time job to have a complete career change, I can honestly say it was the best decision, because now I am self-employed with my own little set up in the back garden which enables me to dictate when and how many hours a day I want to work, giving me freedom to walk my own dogs daily and be at home for my children. 

If you have an interest in dogs and dog grooming, then take the plunge, because once you have a client base and word gets around, your reputation will grow too.  It really was the best move for me. For more information read our article on How To Become a Dog Groomer. 

Ray Forsaw : ParknBark Dog Grooming Salon

After being a farmer all my life I decided that it was time for a change and a new challenge and my passion for dogs led me to follow the path to become a professional dog groomer.  At home I have 4 dogs of my own Tippi a border collie, Teddy a border collie and 2 elderly West Highland Terriors Sidney and Lucy. 

I enrolled on the professional dog grooming course at Anrich and it was the best thing I have ever done. After graduating I set up a mobile dog grooming business ParknBark 2 years ago and I am delighted to say my new career has really taken off . I am fully booked and very busy.  I am doing something I really enjoy which is working with dogs, meeting people and their pets and I have the freedom of working for myself with the hours to suit me.  Going mobile with my trailer was the ideal set up for me and I love being out and about. Besides  going to the customers at home I regularly visit local caravan parks in the area  and have built up good client bases there.  I believe I have found a niche in the market for grooming the bigger breeds such as Newfoundlands ,German shepherds, Old english sheepdogs  as well as all the other breeds and no 2 days are ever the same.

It is all thanks to tutors and  the great course at Anrich. Whilst training I groomed a wide variety of dogs and we were grooming every day, it was very hands on.  The tutors and the support and guidance was  great. The set up at Anrich not only covers the grooming side it also covered advertising and setting up your own business as well as animal health care and first aid. As I had been a farmer all my life this was a huge change for me but I received loads of help and advice about advertising and setting up a website and my own business and I have never looked back. 

Here I am pictured below with one of my customers  Crufts champion the beautiful  'Zefathers What It Takes '  otherwise known as Bella who I groomed in preparation for her first showing at Crufts and she went on to scoop 3 top awards in  three categories this year. Best puppy bitch, best puppy in breed  and Reserve Champion Bitch.

Linzi Mellett : The Pet Parlour

Prior to becoming a dog groomer three years ago, I had worked as a cabin crew member for twenty sevenyears. I had been thinking of a career change for a few years, and had looked into various training courses/occupational paths with the focus on working for myself.

I absolutely love animals, particularly dogs – I had always had a family pet growing up, and am the proud owner of Syd, an adorable little maltipoo. The grooming salon where I used to take Syd was always booked up six weeks in advance, so I knew that good groomers were in demand.

When the opportunity arose for me to use an outbuiding at my parents home in Blackrod, I jumped at the chance to renovate it into a grooming salon, and began to research dog grooming courses. I looked at a few and opted for the five week course that Anrich ran. I am so glad that I did! This hand on, practical course is absolutely fantastic. From the word go you are allowed to practice bathing, preparing, clippering, nail trimming etc. At first I thought ‘I am not going to be able to do this’. This was a huge change for me! Operating a pair of clippers on a moving object was slightly scary and I was a little apprehensive. But within a matter of days I started to feel confident and relaxed. The tutors Yvette and Adele were very supportive. They were with you every step of the way, guiding you through the steps with their knowledge and expertise. I found the five week duration of the course to be just right with the adequate amount of theory and practical content. The advertising and marketing training given by James was extremely beneficial. We all came away from this training day with a wealth of knowledge on building a website and social media advertising ie designing a business facebook page.
 

One of the things I took away from the course was that dog grooming isn’t all about grooming!..... a large part of it is about dog handling, and learning that what works for one dog might not work for another. You have to be very patient and keep your cool when trying to groom a dog who doesn’t necessarily want to be groomed! I named Yvette ‘The Dog whisperer’ because she was the best dog handler I have ever come across!!

So with all this knowledge I had acquired and the training I had accomplished at Anrich, I was ready to start off on my own. I had my premises up and running for when I finished the course (purchasing my equipment during my course with the advice/recommendations given from the tutors).  I advertised on my Pet Parlour Facebook Page for models, offering free grooms for the duration of one month. Then for the next several months, after every groom, with the permission of the dogs owner, I would post a photograph and a little write up about my four legged customers that day. From here my business took off! And within nine months I had built up a customer base of just short of 200 dogs!.... and had to close my books to any new customers. I found that my customers liked the one to one, personal service I was giving and did not want to go anywhere else.

If I can give you the perks and downsides to dog grooming, starting with the downsides! Dog grooming can be challenging sometimes and is physically hard work….. you are stood on your feet all day!

The Perks…. It is really rewarding. I still get a tear in my eye seeing a delighted owners face when they pick up their sprucely groomed pooch! I have built up a wonderful relationship with my dogs owners who I know trust me implicitly.

If you choose to work for yourself, I think anyone who has been their own boss will tell you its perks. You can take time off when you want – I’ll never have to work over xmas or new year again!

So my advice to anyone thinking about becoming a dog groomer is - from one dog lover to another, we all know how much we adore our pets, so with this awareness and the excellent training provided from Anrich, along with your personal commitment, hard work and a passion to succeed, you can be as successful as I have been. Once you have a client base and word gets around, your reputation will grow and you’ll be set up for life!

Laura Thorpe : The Soggy Doggie

I have always worked with dogs, but felt deep down that I wanted to work for myself and create a business that represented myself and my ethics and something I would enjoy for the rest of my life. That’s when I decided to just go for it and train to become a dog groomer! I looked around for ways to do this, that’s when I came across Anrich Dog Grooming School in Wigan, right here in my hometown. I chose to train here because it was very if not all practical based. I’m very hands on and learn best actually doing the work, a full day of grooming worked really well for me and I would go home and do some theory for myself. The staff were great and were always on hand to help and have mountains of knowledge and experience, I felt like my training was really good down to the fact as soon as I finished the course I felt confident enough to start grooming my own clients straight away.

I’m coming up to my second year of grooming and the opening of my business and looking back I can’t believe how great it has gone, all the loyal clients I have and how much I still enjoy grooming. I work from an extension on the back of my home that I designed as my dog grooming salon. It’s just the right size for me and my dogs and it runs off into the back garden so plenty of space to play afterwards! I’ve definitely found my own personality that I’ve put on my business, I take a lot of pride in my work and like to take nice pictures and videos for my social media and really put a lot of effort into that. I work holistically and use 100% natural, vegan products and have even become Wigan’s only ‘Paw Natural’ stockist. I attend many seminars a year to keep my knowledge updated and learn new skills and have gained a lot of friends and contacts in the U.K. & abroad grooming community. I honestly don’t regret anything and have a lot to look forward to with the business growing in the near future.

Sally Carter : The Hound Hut

After 34 years working as a nurse I decided it was time to re-evaluate my life and do something I really wanted to do. As a child I always wanted to work with animals, do something with art or be a hairdresser. Dog grooming appealed because it ticks all those boxes. After a lot of looking at various courses I chose to undertake the 5 week diploma course at Anrich. The course was competitively priced and included animal first aid and some time spent on how to maintain equipment and go about setting up a small business. After successfully completing the course I set up in business 3 weeks later. The course is absolutely fantastic and very hands on right from the start.

The tutors are all so patient and really helpful... even on days you feel you’re struggling they help boost your confidence. The course is exactly what it says on the tin... it’s enough to get you started on a journey of grooming. There are always going to be more things to learn after it and things to improve on... but as a starting point it’s great. I started up my business The Hound Hut on the west coast of Cumbria last June and gave up my relatively well paid job as a nurse. I have never looked back and certainly don’t regret my decision. I am now grooming 15-20 dogs a week with around 80 regular customers. My diary is full for the next month and I can pay my bills. The course at Anrich is life changing…if you want it to be and are prepared to work hard. I for one recommend it.

Charlotte Allsopp : Indies Salon
 

For anyone thinking of opening their own salon or beginning a career in dog grooming I cannot recommend the grooming course at Anrich enough. It gives you the start you need to understand the principles of dog grooming and it also includes hand stripping which is a huge bonus! The training enabled me to get started straight away.  Since completing the course recently I have opened my own 1:1 grooming salon in Sheffield and I am able to offer full grooms and hand stripping which is keeping me very busy. Its fantastic. March is fully booked and April is filling up already.

Rebecca Sells : Top Dogs
 

I have lived in the Algarve with my two sons since 2006. Dogs have been an integral part of my life since I was a baby, but my passion for dogs grew even stronger when I adopted two of my own from a rescue centre in Aljezur on the West Coast of Portugal.
 
Since their arrival into our family, Bonnie and Byron, our two fur babies, have enriched each of our lives in different ways.  For me, my love for everything about them led me to the decision to have a complete career change.
 
Having worked for over 30 years in various positions and countries, at 45 years of age I had finally decided what career path I wanted to take …to become a dog groomer ...better late than never!
 
From the moment I spoke with Christine, the Grooming Manager on the phone to discuss the course, I felt completely at ease and totally reassured that the Dog Grooming Academy within the Veterinary Hospital at Anrich was absolutely the best place to be undertaking my training. I wanted professional training with experienced tutors and just as importantly I wanted to be gaining as much hands-on practical experience grooming dogs as I possibly could.  This is exactly what Anrich were offering me.  I am actually from the South East of England and it would have been easier and more economical for me to have trained there (especially travelling from Portugal), but having looked into numerous courses and training centers I really felt that Anrich were offering the best all round training package.
 
It was absolutely one of the best decisions I have ever made and I thoroughly enjoyed every single moment of the training at Anrich.  We were a small group which was perfect for learning and given the number of tutors always present we never had a moment where we didn´t have someone to call upon for help.  Learning a new skill is a daunting and sometimes terrifying task, but throughout the course I felt 100% supported and never hesitated to ask for help…even when it felt like I was doing so 100 times in a day!
 
Apart from everything already said, I can honestly say that whilst the training is just the beginning and like anything in life we continue learning and improving every day, what the course at Anrich allowed me to do was to leave feeling confident and competent enough to start working on my own in my very own grooming room just two days after I finished the course in November 2018.  I have been grooming dogs every week day since and now have a busy, successful little dog grooming business which I run from my home and absolutely love.
 
My decision to become a dog groomer was life changing and needless to say I have never looked back.