Dave

The Highland Dog

July 28, 2015 By Dave

By Lauren Roebuck

Creating a high-touch experience for clients and their people

Kelly Drescher, the owner of The Highland Dog says the best compliment she can hear from a client is fear that their dog may not want to come back home after staying at her bed and breakfast for dogs. “The dogs have so much fun here, their owners worry that they won’t want to come home,” Drescher says. “That’s good, though, it means I am doing what I set out to do.”

In 2012, Drescher opened The Highland Dog in a four-bedroom converted home in the Highlands. She saw an opportunity to cater to clients who love dogs who hate kennels. Drescher’s own dog had experienced a fear of staying in kennels and she wanted to create a place that dogs could be comfortable and the owners would be able to leave home and not worry about their pet. “It’s like a dog staying in their own home,” Drescher says of the eight suites at The Highland Dog. “They move around and do their own thing.” Drescher lives nearby and cares for the clients in the mornings and evenings. During the day, she has a part-time employee to stay with the dogs and run the retail portion of the business.

The Highland Dog sells organic dog food, toys and other pet care products. At first, she began carrying the toys because people might forget to pack their own, but now she has seen an opportunity to sell to her clients who see their pet playing with a toy at the bed and breakfast and want to take it home.

Drescher’s business model is one of high-touch as she caters to the needs of not only the dogs, but the owners too. “These people love their dogs and hate to leave them,” she says. “They want to know how they are doing and that they are OK.” There are cameras installed throughout the house and Kelly can watch the dogs on her phone at any time.

She and her employee take photos of the dogs playing and resting throughout the day and post them on their Facebook page. “While they are on vacation or out of town on business, they can open up Facebook and see that their dog is lounging around, looking out the window or enjoying play time in the yard,” says Drescher. “This benefit is what my customers enjoy most about staying here. It’s like their dog is on vacation too.”

Drescher has learned a lot about opening a small business in a neighborhood in the last year. She purchased the house that was previously a church parsonage and had to go through the process of getting a kennel permit which required a public hearing. Several people in the neighborhood were opposed to the kennel, so the neighborhood association and council man got involved. “I had never run a small business before; I didn’t know what I was doing!” Drescher said. Drescher sought the help of a local attorney who gave her some free advice and helped her put together a presentation for the public hearing, which went well. She has had no problems with the neighbors since the opening. In fact, several members of the neighborhood association are now clients. She says the publicity over the public hearing actually helped her business because the newspaper covered the story and did a follow-up story on the business opening.

Drescher took classes at the Small Business Development Center where she says she received great advice and counseling on sales, inventory, pricing her services increasing productivity and preparing financial reports and taxes. “The hardest part of being a small business owner is taking on too much yourself,” said Drescher, who also works full time for the Kentucky Air National Guard as a pilot.

One early struggle with getting her business off the ground was finding a small business loan. “It was hard to get started with big banks,” said Drescher. She ended up working with Wilson & Muir, a small, local bank. “I have learned that there are so many good people here in Louisville,” said Drescher. “If you just continue to call and be tenacious, you will get to the right people who will help you.”

Since The Highland Dog opened, it has been booked solid. The company used to offer day care for dog owners who worked a lot or who were having work done at their house or having a party, but they have had no room for extra guests. Her customers come from all over town and even Southern Indiana. She credits her location close to the airport for bringing in clients from a large area. Most of their business is repeat clients and referrals. They are doing a steady business with a database of 110 clients, relying mostly on Google Ad Words and social media for their advertising. The Highland Dog currently offers baths for their clients at an additional cost but the plan is to add a full service groomer in the immediate future. Drescher says she does dream of opening a chain to include The Downtown Dog and other areas of town.

How Much Should I Charge?

July 28, 2015 By Dave

By Vallorie Henderson, Management Consultant, KSBDC
vallorie.henderson@uky.edu

That’s a question asked by many new entrepreneurs. Charging either too little or too much may produce the same results: difficulty luring customers, poor cash flow and suspicions about the quality of your work. Pricing strategy often determines the specific market you will compete in. Let’s make sure your pricing structure is the right one for your business.

See Who Else Does What You Do

Trade journals and professional organizations often publish baseline rates and fees for national, regional and local markets. Asking other entrepreneurs is also helpful, though some may be justifiably reluctant to discuss their fees with potential competitors. Be sure to learn the story behind these prices. Blindly charging the same as someone else may be inappropriate for your business or customers.

Set a Reasonable Starting Point

Many first-time entrepreneurs begin with an hourly rate based in part on what a company would pay someone with comparable skills to do the same kind of work in-house. As you gain experience, you’ll be able to augment your hourly rate with flat per-project fees based on the amount of work, supplies and other resources required.

Don’t Forget the Extras

Your hourly rate should include a percentage to cover the cost of employer-paid fringe benefits (e.g., Social Security, health insurance), and your overhead costs (e.g., office space, equipment, supplies, vehicles, business development and research time). You may also include a profit percentage for funding capital investments or future growth and surcharges for time sensitive assignments or those that require specialty work and extra resources.

Reward Customer Loyalty

AS you develop “regular” customers, consider offering discounts in return for a larger volume of work. Make sure this discount does not cut into your profit margin and that the advantage of staying busy doesn’t limit your ability to attract or serve other customers.

Communicate

Be sure your customer is aware of your rates and surcharges, before doing any work. If the customer wants to negotiate, carefully weigh the pros and cons of a lower fee. Is this a one-time project or the start of a long-term relationship with this customer? Will you still be able to cover your costs of doing business?

Keep Your Prices Current

Don’t set your price schedule in stone. Monitor inflation, industry trends and your own costs to preserve your profit and marketability. Some variables that influence your prices may not become apparent until after you’ve been in business for some time.

A free, objective evaluation of your pricing strategy from an SBDC management consultant like me is also a great way to ensure that the value you provide justifies the compensation you receive. The right price is one that your customers are willing to pay and that also shows a profit for your business. Let me help you find the right price!