For professional groomers
Growing a dog grooming business.
Six practical areas that move the numbers in a grooming business — pricing, diary, marketing, tools and skills — and where the seminars at The Dog Groomers Market go deeper on each.
01
Know what each groom actually costs you
Before raising prices, work out your real cost per dog: time on the table, shampoo and consumables, blade and scissor sharpening, insurance, heating, water and travel. Groomers who price from a known cost per hour tend to raise prices with far less anxiety than those who price from what the salon down the road charges.
02
Charge by coat and behaviour, not just by breed
A matted doodle and a well-maintained doodle are not the same job. A simple coat-condition or handling surcharge, explained clearly at booking, protects your day rate and rewards owners who maintain their dogs between appointments.
03
Fill the quiet weeks with rebooking, not discounts
Rebooking at the end of the appointment — while the dog looks its best — is the cheapest marketing there is. A standing 6 or 8 week slot smooths out your diary and makes coat maintenance easier, which in turn makes each groom faster.
04
Make social media a booking tool
Before-and-afters, short clips of your process and honest captions about coat care do more than polished branding. Post consistently rather than perfectly, reply to comments, and make sure your booking link, area and prices are easy to find on the profile itself.
05
Invest in tools that save you minutes
The right scissors, blades and dryers pay for themselves in time saved per dog. Handling tools before you buy — and asking the people who make and sharpen them — is usually worth more than any spec sheet.
06
Add a skill that lets you charge more
Hand stripping, Asian freestyle finishing and confident scissoring are all specialisms that let you take work other salons turn away. One well-taught session plus practice on your own clients is often the fastest route to a higher average ticket.
Go deeper at the market — Sunday 25 October 2026
Each seminar at Alderwood Senior School, Aldershot is ticketed separately, so you can build a day around the areas you want to work on.
- Asian Creative Flair — Holly MillsFrom 09:15
- Snip Happens — Verity Hardcastle11:30 – 13:15
- Confidence & Tips Using Social Media — Maria Gwilliam12:30 – 14:30
- Hand Stripping Techniques — Charlotte Howard13:30 – 15:30