Fountain Dog Grooming Business Becomes Successful in First Months – Post News

FOUNTAIN — Tara Hershberger, who went from working at the Mayo Clinic to grooming Maltese dogs, decided it was time for a career change and started her own dog grooming business.

Pretty Paws by Tara held its grand opening on December 9, 2023. The business had a soft opening in August, but eventually had an official grand opening after the community came together to construct a new building.

Mr. Hershberger worked at Mayo Clinic for 23 years before deciding it was time for a career change. She had taken time off every year to show her horses and she felt it was time to do something different.

“I asked the Lord, ‘So what can I do?’ It was either a coffee shop or a dog grooming shop,” Hershberger said. “It just came to mind and I’m cutting horses for shows and stuff, so it wasn’t that scary for me.”

She first took an online class on dog grooming and then went to see a groomer in Harmony, Minnesota. She has four of her own training dogs at her home and she thoroughly enjoys being around animals all day long.

When Hershberger first started doing this in August, she was grooming dogs from grain bins. With the weather getting colder, she knew she had to look for a new place.

“It’s like, ‘We need to build something,'” Hershberger said. “My husband broke his ankle, so our church came together and built this in one day. The interior walls weren’t put up, but everything else was done. It was a Saturday, and the next He was grooming here on Thursdays.

The average grooming schedule varies by breed. Some breeds, such as poodle mixes, tend to be more expensive to maintain than golden retrievers. Doodle breeds tend to have him seen every eight weeks, while golden retrievers he may only be groomed every three months.

Each reservation time is also different. For medium-sized dogs, it will take about 1.5 to 2 hours. For this reason, Hershberger has created a nice waiting area where pet owners can wait while drinking coffee.

“People can stay if they want, but most people just want to leave their pets and leave,” Hershberger said. “I’ll send you a message when that’s done, but there are a few people left so I’ll get you some coffee.”

In addition to coffee, Hershberger wanted to make sure her business was a place people wanted to come to. She spent a lot of time deciding how to decorate her space. She brought a pop of color to the place by adding a bright pink accent wall to the building and painting the door pink as well.

“We wanted it to have a boutique feel,” Hershberger says. “So I knew I wanted white and gold, and I knew the bathroom would be white, gold, and black too. I wanted to create a boutique-like feel when you walk in. It’s just dirty. It’s not like a dog groomer, it’s actually like a great place to go.”

She also wanted the dogs to be even cuter when they left. She has a variety of bandanas and ribbons available for dogs to wear after a haircut.

Dog groomers in this area have been really busy lately. Mr. Hershberger has gotten business primarily from word of mouth, Facebook and radio ads. Although she is new to the industry, she is fully booked weeks in advance as more customers come in each week.

Despite her busy schedule, Hershberger is happy to be able to set her own schedule. Now that she has her children, she is able to spend more time with them and participate in all their extracurricular events. Spending more time with her family is one of the big perks of this job change for her.

She is extremely grateful for the tremendous support the community has shown her. She would not have been able to build the new building without the support of the church. For her, this is also an opportunity to give back to the community in a special way.

“Your puppies will come in looking shabby, but they will leave looking beautiful,” Hershberger said. “I love to give. I just want to help people.”

Sarah Guymon is a business reporter for the Post-Bulletin. She Guymon grew up in New Ulm, Minnesota. She graduated from New Ulm Public High School and attended the University of Minnesota Duluth. During her time at UMD, Guymon majored in journalism and double minored in photography and international studies. Before joining the Post Bulletin, she worked as a staff writer at Brainerd Dispatch. There, she covered the city and business of Baxter.