K9 Resorts Daycare & Luxury Hotel Strategically Builds Momentum For the Second Half of 2017

Lifelong animal lovers Steven and Jason Parker became entrepreneurs in 1999 at the ages of 14 and 12 with their first pet care business. While the industry took off and the dream of owning a luxury hotel for dogs lasted, K9 Resorts was born and instantly became a success, leading the brothers to decide to franchise the business. This way, the two could share their passion with other pet owners who wanted to run their own business.

Currently, the brand has seven open locations on the East Coast with four additional franchises preparing to open their doors. That momentum is being fueled by a recently opened New Jersey location, a signed deal in Pennsylvania and new interest from franchisees in key development states including Wisconsin and Colorado. And on top of the incoming interest, K9 Resorts was named a Top Dealmaker of the Year by Franchise Times for their minority investment with Navigator Partners.

Growth strategy

“After our private equity deal in February 2016, we were able to use our time to build out our infrastructure, hire staff and strategically spend marketing dollars to drive new leads our way,” said Jason Parker, K9 Resorts co-founder and co-CEO.

Those new marketing dollars that are being spent in 2017 on print and digital media along with attending industry shows—including the International Franchise Expo and the World Dog Expo—have helped build brand awareness and interest from top candidates for the pet care franchise. Not to mention, owning a K9 Resorts for these prospective franchisees is well within reach due to the fact that the brand works with preferred lenders who are willing to lend up to 75 percent of the total investment, which ranges from $915,655 to $1,292,859 for qualified candidates.

K9 Resorts has found that those qualified candidates often come to them because they’re looking to make a change after being stuck doing something they don’t love for a living. K9 Resorts also sees a lot of interest from people who are passionate about pets and not happy with their current job. Although they may not have business experience, they are confident in the training and systems that K9 Resorts provides for them including start-up training, continued marketing guidance and best practices for the business.

Franchisee success stories

Natalie Mooney, who recently opened her Hamilton, New Jersey location, was first impressed with the service offered to her for her own dog and knew she had to get on board. "It was the most phenomenal thing I've ever seen," Mooney said. "The employees were super helpful, and the place was immaculately clean.

The biggest thing that caught my attention was the cleanliness and the way everything was handled, from start to finish – I’ve never been quite satisfied with boarding services for my own dog, so I noticed these things right away. I was so impressed that by the time we met with the K9’s corporate team, it was almost a done deal."

K9 Resorts hopes to sign another half dozen units before the end of the year. And with its momentum and focus on marketing, the brand has a strong pipeline to do so.

“We are experiencing double digit year-over-year growth for all of our open franchise units, and we are continuing to grow. It’s been a great start to the first half of the year and we are looking forward to expanding and growing further in the second part of 2017,” said Parker.