Bigelow Family brings Doggie Daycare Business to Charlotte!

It’s an exciting time for husband-and-wife team Allan and Sarah Bigelow- the duo are opening a doggie daycare business as the newest members of the Hounds Town USA franchise family! Allan and Sarah, who plan to open the doors to their all-new Charlotte, NC facility in the coming months, are recent transplants to the Queen City after living in Dallas, TX for 5 years and St. Louis, MO for 26 years prior to that.

• Upon moving to Charlotte, NC in July of 2019 from Dallas, Texas, they were interested in exploring several different small business opportunities in the Charlotte area that they felt could be successful.
• Allan, a pilot with American Airlines, who plans to continue with his high-flying career even after opening a doggie daycare business with his wife, says, “We tried grooming salons- I even started taking dog grooming classes- and we also looked at dog boarding places,” explains Sarah, who shares that the couple also briefly considered a couple of other doggie daycare business opportunities, as well as a few non-pet-related concepts like a laundromat franchise.

The Bigelows were inspired by their Havanese, Arlo, as well as Leo their late English Bulldog, whom they still love and miss every day, to own a business that involved dogs in some way. As they began their search for franchise opportunities, the pair placed the majority of their focus on pet care-oriented businesses.

• Allan and Sarah could see how opening a doggie daycare business with Hounds Town USA could allow them to own a place that puts dogs first.
• They felt that our doggie daycare business model and philosophy were in perfect alignment with their goals and values in a way other opportunities hadn’t been.
• “We have looked into other franchises and Hounds Town just felt different…in a good way!” Sarah tells us. “There was always an open line of communication with the entire Hounds Town team and it was apparent that [Hounds Town USA Founder] Mike [Gould] and [Hounds Town USA President] Jackie [Bondanza] go above and beyond to ensure that we have all the resources at our fingertips to build a successful business.”

During a virtual Discovery Day, Allan and Sarah were able to take a deep-dive into the Hounds Town USA franchise model and find out if opening a doggie daycare business with us was the right move for them. They came away from their experience convinced that owning a Hounds Town USA was the next best step in both of their careers.

• Allan and Sarah are looking forward to the next steps that await them before opening the doors to their new Hounds Town USA doggie daycare business, including attending Hounds Town training at our Ronkonkoma, NY headquarters.
• “We are excited to attend the training sessions at their facility and are equally excited to know that they will be in Charlotte for our grand opening, to help train our staff, and be on-site for several days after we open our doors for business,” Sarah says.

Opening a doggie daycare business is the next exciting chapter for Allan and Sarah, who are parents to adult children- a 19-year-old daughter who attends Appalachian University and a son in the National Guard who is currently doing his part to help with the COVID-19 crisis. When Allan is not up in the air, he enjoys boating, skiing, and flying a different kind of aircraft- his drone! Sarah spends her free time working out and practicing yoga. Both Allan and Sarah are avid readers and love spending time with their dog, Arlo.