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UTAH COUNTY -- Does your dog get stressed out going to the groomers? Well, what if the groomer came to the dog? That's the whole idea with K-9 Designs in Utah County.
Mindy Metramalo founded K-9 Designs in 2005. She had a grooming store in Pennsylvania before moving to Utah to attend BYU.
"When I came to school in 2004, I went around to grooming shops and decided I really didn't want to work for somebody," Mindy says. "[I] noticed there weren't any mobile groomers in Utah County, so I decided to get into the mobile side of it."
With two fully-equipped vans, Mindy and her husband, Joseph, cover an area from Point of the Mountain to Salem. They have approximately 650 clients right now, and they add about eight new one's each week.
"You meet all kinds of people and see all different areas of the county doing it this way", Mindy says.
"It's also nice because you get a lot of variety with the dogs, and that changes up as well on a day-to-day basis," Joseph adds.
The groomers-on-wheels business is good. Mindy and Joseph handle five to eight dogs a day on average. Summertime and the holiday seasons are their busiest times, with as many as a dozen dogs a day.
Dog owners say they love the convenience of in-the-driveway service.
Client Teri Braithwaite says her cocker spaniel, Sadie, sees Mindy and Joseph every couple of months.
"Sadie loves them, loves 'em," Teri says. "She used to stress out really bad when I'd take her to the groomers. She would scratch at the cage. So this is less stressful on her. They come right to the house!"
Mindy and Joseph say there's an added reward here. When the job is complete, the dogs seem to strut their stuff. They know they're looking good.
Teri certainly sees that in Sadie.
"She runs around, and you can tell that she thinks she's so pretty. She loves it!" Teri says.
Mobile dog groomers aren't new, but there are only a handful in Utah. Mindy and Joseph don't advertise. Clients find them primarily by word of mouth. [CLICK HERE for more information on K9 Designs]
E-mail: kmccord@ksl.com
