Entrepreneur brings dog grooming shop to her customers
Rather than taking your dog to the groomer, Debbie Oswald brings her shop to you.
Oswald recently launched Doggie Style: A Mobile Grooming Den. The Elk Grove Village entrepreneur has been in the grooming industry for about seven years, working at various shops.
She spotted a mobile grooming facility in a trade magazine and researched the possibility of owning one herself.
She picked up the recreational-type vehicle June 15 and her business began. She already has more than 50 clients.
The vehicle is equipped with a generator, 100-gallon water tank, bathroom and flat screen TV. It has everything needed to groom dogs of all sizes.
Oswald gives the dogs a bath, cuts their fur and nails and then puts a bow or banana in their fur. All the work is done in the vehicle parked in front of the dog's home
"It's so much easier on the dog," Oswald says. It takes her less than 90 minutes to groom the dog compared to the four hours that the dog usually spends at the traditional groomer.
Oswald's pricing for a cut starts at $40. There's a $10 convenience fee for Elk Grove Village residents. A $20 fee is charged to homeowners from other towns. Oswald covers about a 20-mile radius from her home.
"The dogs really like it," said Oswald, the owner of three of her own dogs.
Prior to launching the business, Oswald was in the corporate world selling and training people on phone systems. She then worked with her husband, Sean, at his messenger service business.
Oswald then realized she wanted her own business and followed her love of dogs into grooming.
For more information, call (630) 673-7387.
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