Customer Hero Spotlight – Clover Pup Salon

We’re Proud of our Customer Heroes

At Pro Pet Hero we are proud of everyone that signs up to learn how to be a pet’s hero. Many of these wonderful people not only share a love of pets, but they take that love into their work and work with pets.  No matter where they are in the country, the size of their company or the various capacities in which they work with animals, our students have one thing in common – they care confidently about the clients in their charge!

Today we are kicking off a new feature we are adding to our blog – The Customer Hero Spotlight. We find it very important that the pet care professional companies receive the recognition they deserve. Today we are excited to place into the spotlight Allison Murphy from the Clover Pup Salon. Allison, through her dedication to her grooming clients and grooming business is working hard to raise the bar for the pet grooming industry.

 

What is the name of your business? Clover Pup Salon

Where is your business located? 2908 Taylor Avenue, Racine, WI 53405

What caused you to start your grooming business? So many things played into this. I’ve worked in different areas of the pet industry for my entire professional life, and grooming is where I fit. It combined my love of animals with creativity and building lasting relationships with clients. I wanted to set a good example for my kids, especially my daughter. Ignite their imagination and show them that the options and opportunities ahead of her are endless. To give them a feeling of empowerment by witnessing me following my own dreams. But a whole lot of it was wanting to fight the industry standard. When you walk into my shop, you are met with a calm, peaceful environment that is clean, and pretty, and smells nice. Pets are generally happy to come see us and they look and feel great when they leave. My shop is kept clean, our tools and equipment are sanitized between every pet, and all of my staff is always up-to-date on First Aid and CPR training. The grooming industry is heavily unregulated so when you walk into a shop, you don’t know what you’re going to get. I wanted to reset the industry standard. To set a high bar for myself and to give clients what they are looking for. I wanted to put dirty, smelly, noisy shops in the past and create an experience that would become the expectation instead of the exception.

What is the most fulfilling part of owning/managing your grooming business? Building long term, trusting relationships with my clients. we talk about their pets, but we talk about their lives, and their children, and their work. I get to know these people personally, which is beautiful and amazing and not something you get in many professions. I am contributing to a city I love, and adding to the community of local small businesses that are growing here. I can take an old dog and make them look and feel young again. I can take away itch and discomfort and even pain through my work. I can work with a frightened pet to show them that grooming doesn’t have to be scary… That it can even be enjoyable. I can get a baby puppy in for their first visit and work with them to build a life-long relationship with the grooming process. I can see growth and change in every dog that walks through my front door. And I love every second of that.

What is the most challenging part? It’s really tough when a new client comes in and says they’ve had a bad experience with a groomer. It’s hard because they put that trust into someone and feel let down. Knowing that it’s even harder for them this time around because they feel that they’ve been burned previously. These people are coming in with apprehension and distrust, and that’s a big hurdle. Often, the experience has been equally difficult for the pet, so once you’ve worked with the parent to build that relationship up a little, you’ve got a nervous, stressed out pet to work with next. Once you’ve built up that bond with them both, it’s an incredible feeling, but getting there can be really difficult.

Where do you see yourself in 5 years? Right where I am now, doing what I love. I worked hard to get here, and my goal is to just keep living this dream and having fun in my work and riding this wave for as long as I can.

How has Pro Pet Hero’s Pet first Aid & CPR certification course benefited your company?
Thankfully, so far, it hasn’t come directly into play, and I sincerely hope it never does. Indirectly, however, it helps me and my business every single day. I have my certificate displayed right behind the check-in desk, and clients comment on it all of the time. It makes them feel safer leaving their dogs in my hands. It adds to my credibility and to their comfort level with me. I’ve had new clients come in and really study my shop and my certificates and they tell me all of the time that they don’t even know if previous groomers they’ve worked with had this credential, or what they would do in the case of emergency. Again, this certificate really helps me in my attempts to shift not only the industry standard, but the way that pet owners select their pet grooming professional.

It is incredible to hear the stories about our students and we are excited to celebrate them!

To be considered for our Customer Hero Spotlight please fill out this form.