Use the interactive guide below to narrow down your options.
According to the American Pet Products Association, Americans spent $60.28 billion on their pets in 2015, a 3.9 percent increase compared to 2014. Pet owners in the United States were expected to spend even more on their pets in 2016. In fact, the APPA estimated they’d spend $62.75 billion on their pets, or 4.1 percent more than they spent as a whole during the previous year.
When it comes to pets, owners spend their money on a variety of things, including food, supplies and over-the-counter medicine, veterinary care, live animal purchases and other services. Food is the spending category that pet owners spend the most in, having spent a combined total of $23.05 billion in 2015, followed by veterinary care and supplies and over-the-counter medicine.
The “other services” that pet owners buy for their pets include grooming, pet sitting and yard services, among others. This spending category experienced the largest growth out of all of the spending categories from 2014 to 2015. More specifically, Americans spent 11.8 percent more in this category in 2015 than they did the prior year. This growth rate is more than three times the growth rate of the supplies and over-the-counter spending category, which recorded the second-highest growth rate of 3.9 percent.
When you consider that more than 54 million American households own at least one dog and nearly 43 million homes have a minimum of one cat, it’s easy to see why pet owners in the U.S. spend so much on their pets. When you think about the other kinds of pets people have, such as horses, birds, fish, reptiles and small critters like hamsters, it’s even easier to understand why Americans are compelled to spend so much money on their pets.
Americans spending billions of dollars on their pets every year is great news for people who run pet-related businesses. But is it possible for you to cash in on pet owners’ willingness to open their wallets for their pets even if your business is unrelated to animals? When you partner with All Paws Pet Wash, the answer is “Yes!”
An Opportunity From All Paws Pet Wash
If you own a business — any business — All Paws Pet Wash has created an opportunity for you to capitalize on the growth of the pet industry. More specifically, we’ve created a chance for you to take advantage of the tremendous increase in spending in the “other services” category of the pet industry. All Paws Pet Wash provides turnkey, fully assembled pet washes you can use to offer ancillary self-serve pet washing services to your customers.
While you may be rolling your eyes at the notion of having a pet wash on your property because the nature of your business has nothing to do with pets, All Paws Pet Wash’s coin-operated pet washes are an ideal complement to many kinds of businesses outside the pet industry.
A pet wash can successfully create a supplemental passive income stream for your establishment even if your primary business is unrelated to pets. It can also attract people to your business who wouldn’t have visited your location otherwise.
What kinds of businesses can benefit from a pet wash? Here are some that already have:
- Convenience stores and gas stations
- Pet stores
- Campgrounds
- RV parks
- Laundromats
- Kennels
- Veterinary clinics
- Car washes
- Pet-friendly hotels and motels
- Pet rescues and shelters
Having a pet wash at your location can do more than “just” add to your bottom line by creating another source of revenue and attracting new customers. It can also benefit your clients. It can help them complete two errands with just one stop or prevent them from having to worry about clogging a drain at their home when they wash their pet. It can also save them money.
While you’re free to charge your customers whatever you want when they use your All Paws Pet Wash equipment, the average price for a 20-minute, self-service dog wash is $15. With the national average cost of a dog grooming appointment standing at $65.00, you can help your clients save $50.00 every time they wash their dog just by using your pet wash instead of going to a professional groomer.
While the frequency with which a pet owner should bathe their pet depends on a variety of factors, including the animal’s breed and living environment, it’s generally recommended that dogs get a bath at least every three months.
If each of your dog-owning clients follows this rule of thumb and uses your pet wash instead of a grooming shop, every one of them will save $220.00 per year, which means they’ll have more money to spend on the goods and services you sell through your primary business.
In addition to helping your customers save money, a pet wash from All Paws Pet Wash can help your clients keep their pets healthy. While regular bathing is necessary to maintain the health of any dog or cat, some pets need baths more often due to skin conditions and others will need unscheduled baths after family outings in the woods.
Depending on the needs of your customers, you can offer oatmeal treatments to calm irritated skin in your pet wash. You can also offer a flea and tick shampoo that will kill any fleas or ticks your clients’ pets pick up during an outdoor adventure. You can even prevent your customers’ pets from smelling bad after they’ve rolled in something that had a noxious odor by making a deodorizing shampoo available in your pet wash.
Automatic Coin Operated Dog Washes vs. Self-Service Pet Wash Stations
Now that you’re familiar with the benefits a pet wash station can provide, you’re probably eager to learn about the different pet washes that are available. One kind of pet wash that’s gotten a lot of coverage from various news outlets in the past year or so is an automatic pet wash.
The world’s first automatic dog wash was invented by a group of students and teachers located in Thailand, and the invention was unveiled for the world to see in the spring of 2016. Consisting of brushes, running water, soap injectors and PVC pipes, the vibrantly colored machine pumps water down the back of a dog while motorized brushes scrub the animal’s fur to clean it.
A poodle named Chiang Mai got the first bath in the machine while the dog’s owner stroked the animal to keep Chiang Mai calm during what might have otherwise been an unfamiliar and worrying experience for the poodle.
While the notion of having a machine that can wash their dogs might appeal to many pet lovers as well as business owners, it’s not really practical. At least, it’s not practical at this time, since the first automatic pet wash was only recently invented and some animal activists consider its use abusive.
So, the real question isn’t whether you should get an automatic pet wash or a self-serve pet wash. The real question is which self-serve, coin-operated pet wash should you get from All Paws Pet Wash.
Self-Service Pet Washes by All Paws Pet Wash
All Paws Pet Wash offers several pet wash models for you to choose from, all of which are fully customizable. Deciding which one is right for you depends on a variety of factors, including whether you want a standalone wash or you want your pet wash to be located inside your existing structure.
Your budget, the amount of space you have to devote to your pet wash and the amount of foot traffic you expect your pet wash to generate are also significant considerations.
All Paws Pet Wash units range in price from $7,000 to $60,000 depending on the model you purchase and how customized you want your pet wash station to be. Keith Caldwell, our vice-president, reports that the average monthly revenue you can generate from one of our pet washes ranges from $800 in a slow month up to $3,000 per month during busier periods. With that kind of supplemental revenue potential, it’s possible for many entrepreneurs to pay off their pet washes in as little as two years.
If you want a free-standing pet wash, we have two modular models available: ADA 813 and ADA 821. Both of these options are prime locations in which to place one of our treat-stocked vending machines. Our vending machines don’t just give pet owners a chance to reward their pets after a bath — they also give you an opportunity to create another supplemental income stream.
Our ADA 813 and ADA 821 pet wash models are ideal choices for businesses such as car washes, convenience stores, campgrounds and RV parks, among others. These pet wash stations are mostly autonomous. All you’ll need to do to operate one successfully is keep it clean and stocked with bathing supplies, show people how to use it properly and make change when necessary.
The ADA 813 and ADA 821 are climate-controlled, which means they can be open year-round. Each model comes with a built-in coin and bill acceptor, but you can add a credit card reader to your pet wash for your customers’ convenience. Even if your business isn’t open 24/7, your modular pet wash building can be if you add a credit card reader, because your clients won’t need change in order to wash their pets.
The biggest difference between our modular pet washes is size. The ADA 813 measures 8’ x 13’ while the ADA 821 is larger, measuring 8’ x 21’. Because the ADA 821 is larger, it has two bathing stations while the ADA 813 has one bathing bay.
In addition to our turnkey modular pet washes, we offer units that can be installed either inside your building or outside. If you’re going to install a self serve pet wash outside, we suggest you consider getting one of our affordable awnings to protect users from the elements.
Our additional pet washes, which are ideal for vet clinics, kennels, pet rescues and pet-friendly hotels and apartment complexes, include the following options:
- APW Option A: This station comes complete with a tub attached to a nine-button operating system that lets users choose the products they want to use to clean their pets. This unit has a step pets can use to get into the large tub. It also has a dryer and sprayer, as well as a built-in coin and bill acceptor. If you decide on this station, you’ll also get a starter kit that includes one gallon of six different soaps, including Oat Shampoo, Tearless Shampoo, Conditioner, Flea & Tick Remover, Pet Deodorizer and Tub Disinfectant. Like our other pet wash stations, this model is fully customizable and it can be outfitted with custom graphics.
- APW Option C: This wash station is a free-amenity model, meaning people who have access to it don’t need to pay to use it. This makes the unit a great choice for locations such as campgrounds and private communities that are looking to provide desirable amenities for the people who visit or live there. Like APW Option A, this unit has a generously sized tub that’s attached to a user-friendly operating system. This model also has a step, dryer and sprayer.
- Flip-Tub: If space is tight at your location, you’re going to want to consider our flip-tub. A flip-tub is an APW that only extends 12 inches from the wall. When someone wants to use it, they simply pull the tub down from the wall. Our flip-tubs have a built-in coin and bill acceptor, which means they can be used 24/7 as long as they’re placed in an area your customers can access throughout the day and night.
- Cabinet and Tub: This station provides a tremendous amount of flexibility when it comes to positioning, because the unit’s cabinet is only attached to the tub by a hose. Our Cabinet and Tub combo has no built-in walls. You can get this pet wash as a free amenity equipped with our three-button operating system or a fee-based station that’s equipped with our nine-button interface and coin and bill acceptor. Like all of our pet washes, our Cabinet and Tub model is fully customizable and is delivered ready to be used immediately after it’s hooked up to the utilities.
- Manual Tubs: Similar to our APW Option C, our manual tubs are an amenity-free option. Unlike our other bathing stations, this model doesn’t have an attached cabinet. Instead of a cabinet, this unit has a bin attached to its end where your soaps are stored. Because they don’t have a cabinet, our manual tubs are noticeably smaller than our other pet washes. Our manual tubs measure just 54 inches long and only about five feet tall, which makes a manual tub a smart choice if you only have limited space. Instead of a push-button operating system, our manual tubs are equipped with rotating dials. To use a manual tub, users will simply rotate the first dial to the function they want and then rotate a second dial to select the particular soap they’d like to use to clean their pets.
As you can see, you have a nice selection of options if you choose to buy a pet wash from All Paws Pet Wash. You can use one of our pet washes to add to the perceived value of your location by making it available to use for free, or you can use one to create at least one additional revenue stream. The choice is yours!
If you want to learn more about our pet washes or you need help deciding which unit is right for your business, contact All Paws Pet Wash. Complete our contact form, chat with us online.