The dog daycare vs the pet store franchise: which is better?

So you want to work with dogs for a living. It’s not surprising. Dogs are amazing to work with, and they bring fun and joy to their owners’ lives. It stands to reason a career working with pups would be pawsitive, right? The question is, dog daycare or pet store franchise?

How about we take a look at the two types of businesses and see which might be more promising?

The similarities between dog daycares and pet store franchises

pups, pups, pups!

With both types of franchises, you get to work with dogs every day. Dogs are a major part of each business’s focus, so there’s plenty of puppy interaction happening.

The pet store franchise may see many more dogs in a single day than a dog daycare franchise may see. Pet stores have the chance to serve a greater number of customers for a shorter duration of time than a dog daycare does. So while they get the pleasure of more dogs’ company, each interaction lasts much less time.

With a dog daycare business, you have much longer time with the dogs, and the repeat business is quite possibly a much shorter cycle. This offers a bigger opportunity for a deeper relationship not only with the pup in question, but with that pup’s pawrents.

The pups’ best interests at heart

Both the franchise pet stores and dog daycares are concerned about the animals’ well-being. It’s hard working with dogs and not wanting what’s best for them. Owning a pet store franchise or a dog daycare can give you the opportunity to care for dogs in many ways. 

The opportunities range from helping their owners find products and services that benefit the animals’ health to recommending ways in which the dogs can achieve optimal socialization. Of course, with a dog daycare, there’s more active participation in that socialization, but that doesn’t mean a pet store franchise owner can’t also be involved in that process.

The differences between between dog daycares and pet store franchises

Unique focus for business

While it’s true the two types of businesses have similar motivations, they go about serving the needs of dogs in different ways. 

Pet store franchises are much more product focused, offering their customers foods and toys designed to enhance a pet’s health and well-being. 

Dog daycare franchises are service focused, providing pup families with daycare services, overnight hotel space, grooming, and in some cases, training classes and more targeted professional services. Dog daycares have very little inventory to keep on hand, which simplifies operations in many ways.

It’s possible for a pet store franchise and dog daycares to have slightly overlapping revenue streams—like grooming services at a pet store, or a daycare may carry a limited range of retail products—so when considering which investment to make, your interests may actually be piqued by both options.

pet store franchises serve a broader range of animals

If dogs are specifically the animal you’re hoping to work with, then a franchise pet store may be less up your alley. Pet store franchise opportunities very frequently cater to the needs of animal species beyond dogs, including cats, birds, fish, and even more exotic animals.

In many cases, owning a pet store franchise may require a wider range of animal expertise than that required to own a dog daycare franchise. This may be a very important factor in considering which type of business in which to invest.

leaning towards owning a dog daycare franchise? bark! bark! is ready for you!

the bark! bark! philosophy

At bark! bark!, we commend pet stores for what they do, because we couldn’t do what we do without them. However, we love what we do because we get to build deeper connections with the pups in our packs. 

We get to give pup owners the comfort and knowledge that their furry family members are safe and cared for while they’re working or traveling and can’t have their pets with them. To do this, we offer the pups in our care the very best in monitoring, play, and socialization. 

Our pups are grouped not by size but by temperament, so their distinct needs are met the pack way—the bark! bark! way. Dogs feel at home with others of their kind, and spending time with dogs that match their energy allows even shy or anxious dogs to bond well and warm up at their own pace.

We build these connections between pups, but we also build relationships with our pet owners because they trust us to take good care of their dogs. This means they bring their animals back to us time and again, and we get to know them well. These families become part of the bark! bark! pack, too. 

bark! bark! is where cool dogs go.

bark! bark! support for franchisees

We don’t just know how to support our pups; we know how to support our franchisees with a hands-on approach that builds deep relationships with our savvy entrepreneurs who join us. 

Support for a bark! bark! franchisee includes:

• Site selection advice using demographics models built around our experience in the dog daycare and overnight hotel industry. You’ll have the best possible location before you know it!
• Design and construction guidance that complies with the safety guidelines we require for every bark! bark! location. This includes engaging, functional space without sharp edges or small spaces where the dogs can get stuck. All the materials are dog-friendly and non-toxic, and the aesthetic and decor fits the bark! bark! brand’s cool vibe.
• Training is a must to give you the necessary skills and knowledge base to run your dog daycare business to the bark! bark! standard. You’ll begin on the right paw with 5 days of in-person training in our flagship Long Beach location, which splits in-class instruction and on-site experience with our fully-trained staff. Ongoing training and support continues so you and your staff will remain up-to-date on the latest training techniques and behavioral advances.
• Best-in-show technology rounds out our support. Our customers love our cool cams, where they can view their pups at play, rest, or any other time, and we can promise peace of mind this way. Technology is to our brand, so of course we employ advanced technologies to run the business itself. Cloud-based tech runs scheduling, payroll, data reporting, and other administrative functions of the bark! bark! business.
• Marketing messaging that’s on point is key to attracting new business, and we’ve pawfected the design and message for bark! bark!. As a franchisee, you’ll receive marketing templates customizable for your franchise location that make your local marketing a walk in the park.
• The bark! bark! franchise model also offers a business development and growth support component, developed to achieve next-level marketing, sales, and operations so you as a franchisee can focus on your bark! bark! business. We’ve taken the guesswork out of generating customer leads and promoting growth and development as well as customer retention, and our program has worked for many years. Sharing our methods with you gives you the chance to experience the same customer demand we’ve seen in our flagship locations.

We’ve thought of everything at bark! bark! for giving our franchisees everything they need to be one of the cool dogs and join us in giving pups their best life. 

Every day at bark! bark! is truly a joy with the pups in our pack, and we’d love to hear from entrepreneurs who are just waiting to put a paw in with us! We’re not a pet store franchise; we’re so much more!