How do you split tips?

[4Newfs]

I'm the only groomer in an upscale boarding and daycare facility. We've only been open a few months, but I'm working my butt off and have finally decided to add a helper a few days a week. I've taken one of our best pet handlers and have started to train her as a bather. The plan is we will add days in the grooming salon over the next few months and eventually she will be in the salon full time. She works HARD, harder then most people I know. She's absorbing information like a sponge and really does make my job easier. I get tips from about 40% of my customers. More each day. I know what the shop pays her, and I know I wouldn't work as hard as she does for what she's paid. I have absolutely no problems sharing my tips with her. But I'm wondering what you guys do. Do you split evenly? Base it on the amount of work that's done? What?

Thanks!

[baddog]

I usually have my groomers ( well I suggest it) give 15%

[Helly]

This makes me harken back to the days when I worked waiting tables and would tip the cook at the end of my shift. Some days I'd split my tips evenly, some days it was more of a 40/60 split. It really depended on how much grief I'd given him that day. If my orders were mostly burgers and fries, I'd tip accordingly. If he'd had to make a lot of more complicated orders, or if I had large parties where he'd had to work his butt off, I tipped more. And the other waitresses used to wonder why my orders always came up so fast, lol.

So I guess I'd just tip the bather at the end of the day, according to how much work I'd put her through.

[GriffonsMOM]

When I've had help from bathers I've always given the bathers the tip if one of my clients tipped. I figured I'm getting the commission which is a heck of alot more then the hourly wage the poor bather was getting , and without her help I wouldn't have been able to do twice as many dogs.

[SpikeyTheYorkie]

Right now my assistant gets 100% of tips on bath-only dogs (Labs, pugs, etc), she gets 1/3 of tips from dogs that I spend more time on (takes me longer to clip a shih tzu than for her to bath/dry one), and 2/3 tips on B&B dogs that I scissor feet and fanny, etc---because SHE spent more time on them.

Basically it comes down to who spent more time on the dog. I realize people are paying me for the skill, but I'm payin' her for the hard work. At the same time I can groom more dogs, but this way I am not coming out BEHIND in tips.

I am trying to earn my way to Pet Pro Classic in Dallas in Nov. and I am doing that with my tips. I did not want to hire someone, only to come out behind. I want to come out ahead or at least even. She's done pretty good with tips lately, but our first 3 weeks were dry as a bone! We hardly got a dime the last few weeks for some weird reason!

Tammy in Utah

[drubaby]

I split 50/50

[happy trails]

When I was in a shop it was 50/50 even if I bathed my own dogs.My bather took appointments and filed and called owners for me and cleaned.A good bather is worth their weight in gold!

[Gracy Rose]

My groomers keep 100% of their tips (even if it is on a credit card). My bather gets 100% of the bath dog tips as well as an hourly amount and commission on any bath dogs. My receptionist is paid hourly therefore no tips.

[Allan]

If you show your confidence in this person then 50/50 would be nice.
On occasion tip the scale in her favor..60/40 when she is exceptional.
As former Management, I would do this providing I could afford it, as you
are only as good as your team.

[rapuzzled]

at the shop that I work at the shop owner splits it 50/50. Sometimes I may do more work, but there are other times that I may have her scrub a double coated dog really well, etc. So I think that it all works out well in the end. A happy bather is very important, because without a good bather, the cut looks like ****, so I am more than happy to split my tips.

[K-9 Designs]

In our business the bathers are paid more than waiters. I believe tips are a bonus and something is better thatn nothing. On an average basis I would probably split 70/30 and on the tough days with large and hairy dogs I might go up to 55/45. My line of thinking is slightly lower throughout the year and give a good christmas bonus.

[Reddobe1]

Just keep in mind that her job is as important as yours. I know that without a good bath and an excellent fluff I can't make my dogs look nice---if it isn't done right you have to spend more time on the groom, so if she's not yet where you want her to be in quality I would still split tips, but not 50/50 until she acheives the quaility you want--and explain that to her so she has a goal to reach. You can't beat a great bather.

[scullysmom]

we split evenly. Bathers groomers alike. The only time it is different is if someone works 1/2 day, then they get 1/2 share etc.

[Kifaru]

I'm on the same side of the fence as Helly and Spikey - I don't really have a set 'policy', ratio, or amount. I generally toss my bather a dollar for each dog I did that day - and I don't skip the dollar for the occassional snotty dog that I bathe myself, (or for the snotty customer who insists I bathe their dog myself.) If I did six dogs, she gets six bucks, even if she bathed four of mine and I bathed two. If it's a Golden, or a Samoyed, or some other big hairy (or little hairy like Sheltie or Pom), I toss her an extra dollar or more on that dog.
I'd say she ends up with %30 to %50 of my tips on any given day.

And she earns every red cent.

[Boxerfan]

We put all tips into a can to split. 3 of us work in the shop, bather gets 1/4 of the total tips then the 2 of us left split the remainder 50/50. (If we get $80 for the week then the bather gets $20 and the 2 groomers get $30 each). Our bather doesn't do nails or anything else to bath only dogs so we still split those dogs instead of giving 100% to her, when the time comes that I don't have to touch that bath dog at all then I could see giving her the total tip. The only time a tip goes to only one person is when no one else touches the dog tipped on. For example if a groomer bathes her own dog and then grooms it then she is entitled to the tip.

No wrong or right way to do it.