Today we’d like to introduce you to Martina Martinez.
Hi Martina, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I’ve been grooming for 12 years. I started as a bather at Petsmart then worked my way up to groomer. After two years I decided to switch to Mobile grooming and worked for a small business for about 6 years. During the COVID shutdown my boss had to let me go and so I started my own business in June 2020. I worked as a house call groomer until I got my mobile grooming van in November 2020.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
When I became a groomer it was a big transition from being just a dog bather. Now I was using sharp tools on a live animal. It took me some time to establish a routine and become more efficient in my skills but eventually I got there. Once I transitioned from working in a salon to now being a mobile groomer I found myself having to learn a new way of grooming. Instead of having reliable help in my coworkers I was now on my own and had to figure out how to be self reliant which can be very difficult when working with live animals. Over time I became accustomed to this new way of grooming and realized how much I prefer to work in a mobile grooming environment. At this point in my career I thought I would not go through another situation where I had to learn another set of skills. When I lost my job with the small business I was working with it was a big shock for me and at first I wasn’t sure what to do. It was risky starting a new business during a time where so many businesses were closing especially one where I had to go into peoples homes. Thankfully my business succeeded but instead of just being a groomer I now had to also be a business owner which I had no idea how to do. That first year as a business owner was very difficult. I needed to choose a business model, pick what kind of van I wanted to buy, order business cards, learn how to do my taxes a different way, set up an llc, etc. I’m so grateful to my friends, family and my CPA for helping me along the way.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
Barkin Beautiful is a mobile dog grooming company that offers one on one grooming in a stress free environment. We offer a space without distractions and groom at your pets pace. We specialize in learning your pets behavior and determining what grooming process your pet is comfortable with. We are a family runned business and each pet in our care becomes like family. We love getting to know each one and how their personalities make them unique.
We keep you up to date with any issue that may be found during the grooming process such as skin conditions, ear infections or any other health issue that may not be obvious.
We offer two main packages:
Bath package – bath, brush, light trimming depending on the breed, ear cleaning, nail trim/grind and anal gland expression
Haircut package – bath, haircut, ear cleaning , nail trim/grind and anal gland expression.
We only charge extra for:
Dematting (determined by how long it takes to dematt your pets coat)
Deshed
Deskunk
Teeth brushing
We made our packages all inclusive to make sure each pet gets all of their grooming needs met.
We base our prices off of breed, coat and location.
Is there anyone you’d like to thank or give credit to?
My biggest supporter is my husband Vince Martinez, he has helped me build this business from helping with answering phone calls, to working on my schedule, doing maintenance on my van. My company would not be where it is today without him. He is my rock and is always there to help me with whatever I need. My in-laws Jesse and Lisa Martinez helped me to financially secure my van and without them I wouldn’t have been able to make the transition from house call groomer to mobile groomer. They have both also helped me gain many clients. They are big supporters of me and my business. I am forever grateful to them. My mother and daughter are also big supporters of my business by recommending me to anyone they can and I have gained clients through both of them. Barkin Beautiful is a family runned business even if they don’t work with me directly.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://barkinbeautiful.com/
- Instagram: @barkinbeautifulmg
- Facebook: https://facebook.com/BarkinBeautifulMobileGrooming
