How cheap can people be?

[cockerlvr]

Had a customer call today. She's got some sort of small short haired mix, like a min pin and a pom. These two dogs were new to her (she and her daughter ran over her old ones). Wanted to know how much each dog's price was last time she was in. I told her, and she said (obviously not real number, but trust me, it's a low number) wow 4 dollars for JUST a bath? I said, well, it's not JUST a bath. We also did the nails, anal glands, cleaned the ears and de-shed him. I showed your hubby how much hair we got out of him, and although he didn't believe it was from your dog, it was indeed. So it's definitely not just a bath. If you count the one dollar for the nails, and the one dollar for the anal glands, and the one dollar for the ears, you are basically getting a bath, conditioner, hand blow dry and de-shed for 1 dollar. What did she do? Booked the dog for nails and anal glands and she'll bathe him at home. I was burning all morning over that one. Told hubby, yea, I'll 'just' bathe the dog for one buck and she can have him back soaking wet.

[Cathy32086]

We simply don't book dogs that owners want to bath at home. We tell them it's the same price with or without the bath so they may as well get one, if they want to argue the point I suggest that they may be happier with another groomer that is willing to work with them. It takes a pretty special circumstance and it's always on my terms for us to groom any dog without doing bath also.

[leximom77]

The other day I raised a customer's price 5$ (she hadn't had a price increase in 2 years) and she was flabbergasted. She pocketed the tip she was about to hand me. sigh.

[HoneyandChewiespal]

You have two options, refuse to accept any partial groom like that or harge 'ala carte' fees for individual services that, when added up individually , equate to a dollar amount greater than the bath package price.
I've had clients try to bring their dogs in already bathed at home and want me to brush out and scissor/shave, and I charge higher prices for that. If they complain I explain to them that ordering ala carte at a restaurant costs more than the dinner special. Next step is to ask if their hairdresser will allow them to come in for 'just a cut', since most high end salons will never allow that.
For those willing to listen and capableof understanding I explain that I only put my scissors and clippers on clean fur and when they bring a dog that has been bathed at home I am wearing out my equipment faster and will need to have it sharpened sooner than normal at $$$$ cost. I then -briefly- cite the prices of my scissors (Kenchiis, Kamisoras, and Blue Breeze)and explain that this is the equipment I use to earn my living. Always polite and with a smile, but the point gets across.
If you lower your standards one time you will never be able to get back to a professional footing with that client, or any which that client may refer.

[Spookykat]

That's so lame. Today I had lady throw a huge fit over the price of her dogs being groomed, said they were suppose to be a dollar cheaper than I charged her. A dollar!!

I really wonder what goes through these peoples' heads sometimes.

You should just charge her for a pair of nail clippers and tell her now she do the who shebang at home herself.

[dobermandaisy]

I get those customers every now and then. Me: What you want anal glands and nails done but you will bathe the dog at home? Ok anal glands $20, nails $8. What your dog was only $25 for everything???? well I'm sorry I dont like squeezing a** on a dry dog without water near by.

[KarlaSnyder]

In this economy, people are trying to cut back on their spending. I would never expect a person with a short haired dog to pay to have someone give it a bath. Just do the nails and glands for ala carte price and warn her that she may want to bathe the dog after the glands are done.

[Doubledogdare]

What did she do? Booked the dog for nails and anal glands and she'll bathe him at home.

We do nails and anal glands as a walk-in service, no appointment needed. Glands are done in the tub and the butt washed and rinsed afterwards.

For us, we would then charge her for services rendered and what she wanted to do at home with her dog was her business, not ours.

We wouldn't be eating Rolaids over it, I know that.

We actually have some customers with dogs like Labs and such who come to us for nails, ears, pads, anals, then walk the dog around the corner to the self-service at the car wash and wash the dog themselves.

Their dog, their money, their decision.

[Brit]

People can be very cheap and I just don't bargain. If they are a senior have a hard time I have some appts available for less occasionally and some of them stay with me for a long time. I can tell, but other people that use the groomer to save some bucks I won't be used. You go with your heart.

[cockerlvr]

We do nails and anal glands as a walk-in service, no appointment needed. Glands are done in the tub and the butt washed and rinsed afterwards.

For us, we would then charge her for services rendered and what she wanted to do at home with her dog was her business, not ours.

We wouldn't be eating Rolaids over it, I know that.

We actually have some customers with dogs like Labs and such who come to us for nails, ears, pads, anals, then walk the dog around the corner to the self-service at the car wash and wash the dog themselves.

Their dog, their money, their decision.

and that is exactly what we do DDD. When I said book an appointment, she basically just said she'd be in Thursday. The part that frosted me was the JUST a bath. I guess it further frosted me because when I showed the husband the bucket of hair we got out of his dog, he said that's not from MY dog, he doesn't have hair like that. Oh, yes, he does sir.

As for economy etc, these people, at least on the surface, are not poor. They own two nice cars, a truck to pull their very nice camping trailer, dress well etc.

I'm not talking about a groom here folks, he's a bath and brush dog. I don't do grooming with home baths. My finish isn't as good, and I'm not willing to use my scissors on feet that have grit in them.

[Cyn]

People can be very cheap and I just don't bargain. If they are a senior have a hard time I have some appts available for less occasionally and some of them stay with me for a long time. I can tell, but other people that use the groomer to save some bucks I won't be used. You go with your heart.

Well said brit! You do know in your heart who is cheap and who needs help.

[wolfy-hound]

We do anals and/or nail trims as walk-ins too. Same thing. Some dogs don't even get a 'wash' on their butt, just a baby wipe clean up(although I'll wash if it needs it, but just depends on the dog and how things 'work out'). Some days we have more nails walk in than we do in grooms!

I figured it up one day as a nail trim costing $5... and it takes 5 minutes. So technically, I'm being paid $60/hour to trim a dog's nails. Not too shabby. Those clients might bathe the dog themselves at home or maybe they're just in between baths/grooms and want nails trimmed up. Doesn't matter too much to me.

I agree though when someone dismisses a "bath" as being nothing. We don't just throw water at the dog and send it home. We clean the dog through and through, dry it and do all the little tidbits. (We don't charge extra for nails when we give a dog a bath or groom, it's just part of the grooming process, we only charge the fee if they ONLY want nails trimmed).

I've asked people if they've ever had a professional car detailing. Our service is somewhat the same. You can clean the junk out of your car and hose it down... but it's not nearly like the car detailing service! They vaccuum every crevice, polish the interior, wash, dry and polish the exterior, do the windows, shine the tires and clean the hubcaps. Our "dog bath" is equivalent and they pay for that level of service!