Surviving the Christmas ‘Grooming’ Season

With the festive season fast approaching, it makes good business sense to prepare.  Whether you’re dealing with new or existing clients, here are my top tips for surviving what is inevitably the hairiest time of the year.

Managing Your Diary

• Set your opening and appointment times and stick to them. Don’t be sucked in by clients that didn’t bother to book early enough.
• Use the option of putting the client on a cancellation list to avoid confrontation.
• Offer clients a Christmas bath and tidy instead of a full groom, they will be back in January during your quiet time
• Take deposits for Xmas bookings, make them non refundable or transferable
• Make sure you charge for missed appointment
• Don’t book new customers at Xmas unless you are quiet. The chances are their regular groomer can’t fit them in and they are only using you. You also don’t want dogs that are in a state and matted during your busiest time
• Change your answering machine message to say you are full and won’t be taking new bookings until January. Then don’t answer the phone during busy periods

Managing Your Day

• Get all your sharpening done NOW. Including the manky old scissors you use for dirty coat. You can guarantee that things will go blunt when you need them most and it is always good to have spares
• Trim the dogs shorter on the groom before the Xmas appointment. Then you can get away with a good tidy all over rather than the usual groom. Also this lessens the chance of the dog being knotty during your busiest time of the year.
• Towel dogs really well, saves drying time and also means less moisture in the air which can affect drying time
• Get a good quality dehumidifier, helps with drying dogs and your towels will be dry overnight
• Remind customers the importance of being on time as late drop off and collection will mean huge disruption in your day
• Dematting sprays, fast dry sprays and texture sprays can really help. Products can come into their own at this time of year.
• Keep your blades oiled and cleaned
• KEEP YOUR ENERGY LEVELS UP. lots of water, fruit to snack on and protein too.  These are much better than energy drinks.

Last but not least…

Get into the Christmas spirit.  Happy groomers means happy dogs which means happy clients.  Happy clients means big tips and lots of chocolates

Make sure you get plenty of rest of Xmas, eat well and be Merry.  You have bloody earnt it