Unit Option

Single, Multiple, Area Representative/Master Developer

Background

FDD Franchised Units: 23

Corporate Owned Units: 1

Projected New Units: 30

Year Established: 2020

First Year Franchised: 2021

Type of Business: Franchise

Hours of Operation: Regular Business Hours

Number of Employees: Small (1-5)

History:

From Corporate Burnout to Building BarkSuds

BarkSuds began with a feeling that I believe millions of successful professionals understand: I was making good money, but something was missing.

I had spent much of my professional life as an attorney working for large corporations. I worked hard, built a successful career, and did everything I thought I was supposed to do. But eventually, I realized that no matter how hard I worked or how much I gave, I was still an employee. There was less and less job security, I felt increasingly disposable, and I couldn’t imagine spending the rest of my working life repeating the same corporate cycle.

Then I lost my job.

What initially felt frightening ultimately became one of the greatest blessings of my life.

I decided to get completely outside my comfort zone. I wanted to create something of my own—something that could fill my heart as well as my pocketbook. I wanted to wake up excited about what I was building. I wanted normal hours, more balance, and the opportunity to involve my family. Most importantly, I wanted to spend my time doing something that actually brought me joy.

I loved dogs, so I built a business around them.

That business became BarkSuds.

Today, I can look back and say that BarkSuds changed my life. Instead of spending my days inside the corporate grind, I’m surrounded by dogs, dog lovers, franchisees, employees, and families building businesses of their own. My own family became part of what I created.

And somewhere along the way, something remarkable happened: work stopped feeling like work.

I don’t get the Sunday-night blues anymore. I don’t wake up Monday morning counting the days until Friday. For years now, I’ve had the privilege of building something I genuinely love—and watching other people discover that same feeling through BarkSuds.

That’s why our ideal franchisee isn’t necessarily someone from the pet industry. It’s often the executive, attorney, salesperson, manager, professional, or entrepreneur who has achieved success but finds themselves asking:

“Is this really what I want to do for the rest of my life?”

BarkSuds is for people ready to get outside their comfort zone and build something of their own—something joyful, family-oriented, lifestyle-friendly, and meaningful.

I started BarkSuds because I wanted a business that would fill my heart as well as my pocketbook.

I found it.

Now I get to help other people find it, too.

Availability

Territories: United States

Financials

Liquidity: $5,000

*Investment Range: $200,000 - $230,000

**Average Investment: $200,000 - $200,000
Provided by the Franchisor

Minimum Net Worth: $100,001 to $250,000

6 Month Cash: $5,000

Franchise Fee: $46500 first unit | $40000 for second unit | $32000 for third unit | $25000 for fourth unit and thereafter.

Royalty: 6%

Royalty Description: 6% of Gross Sales

Advertising: Presently no Brand fee in place

National Advertising: Presently no Brand Fee in place.

Ramp-Up: 1 to 3 months

Passive Ownership: Semi- passive at onset (they can hire a manager to run business)
Passive Ownership means the owner is working 15 hours or less per week in the business.

Passive Ownership Explain: The BarkSuds model is highly procedural and once in place can provide for passive involvement. Our hiring guidelines allows for limited ownership presence should that be a consideration.

Available Discounts

• Veterans
• Minorities
• Women
• First Responders

Discount Description: Reduction in Franchise Fee

Training, Support and Assistance

Co-Operative Advertising: N/A

Site Selection Assistance: Available

Lease Negotiation Assistance: Available

Length of Training: Unlimited

Training Description:

BarkSuds Training — From Signing to Opening & Beyond

• Training Begins Immediately — From the moment you sign your Franchise Agreement, your BarkSuds training journey begins. You are never expected to figure out the business on your own.
• Dedicated Personal Mentor — Every new franchisee is assigned a personal mentor who guides you through the entire process—from initial training and site development through hiring, opening, and operating your salon.
• BarkSuds University — Franchisees receive ongoing access to our proprietary online training platform, BarkSuds University, featuring an extensive and continually expanding library of custom training videos, tutorials, demonstrations, operational resources, and best practices developed specifically for our franchise system.
• Learn at Your Own Pace Before Hands-On Training — BarkSuds University prepares you before you ever step behind the counter. Training covers dog intake, bathing, grooming services, safety procedures, customer service, membership sales, software, scheduling, salon operations, cleaning, equipment, products, and much more.
• Complete Opening & Operations Checklists — We provide detailed, proven checklists covering virtually everything you will need—from equipment and grooming supplies to recommended products, vendors, purchasing information, salon setup, operating procedures, and opening preparation.
• BarkSuds Products & Supplies — Franchisees receive training on our BarkSuds signature-scent, white-label product line, including which products to use, proper applications, ordering procedures, and convenient direct shipment.
• Hands-On Corporate Salon Training — After completing the initial online curriculum, franchisees receive live, hands-on training at our corporate salon. You’ll experience the BarkSuds model in action—from the front desk to the bathing and grooming areas.
• Front-of-House Training — Learn our software, appointment booking, customer intake, membership presentation and sales, customer service, payments, scheduling, and the systems that keep the salon operating efficiently.
• Back-of-House Training — Learn proper bathing and grooming procedures, dog handling and safety, kennel organization, workstation setup, equipment usage, product application, cleaning procedures, workflow, and delivery of BarkSuds services.
• Ambassador Franchisee Program — New owners are connected with experienced BarkSuds franchisees through our Ambassador Program, providing another layer of real-world guidance, peer support, shared experience, and practical advice.
• Hiring & Employee Training Support — We help franchisees through the employee hiring and training process so their team understands the BarkSuds culture, operating procedures, customer experience, safety standards, and services before opening.
• Pre-Opening On-Site Training — Our team travels to your salon prior to opening to help ensure the location, equipment, systems, software, employees, appointment book, and operations are ready for Day One.
• Pre-Opening Appointment Building — Training works hand-in-hand with our pre-opening marketing program so franchisees can begin generating awareness, memberships, and appointments before opening their doors.
• Opening Confidently — Our goal is simple: you don’t open until you and your team feel prepared to operate the BarkSuds model safely, efficiently, and confidently.
• Training Doesn’t End at Grand Opening — BarkSuds University remains available after opening as an ongoing training and reference resource for owners, managers, and employees. New training, instructional videos, best practices, operational improvements, and system knowledge are continually added.
• A University Built from the Experience of an Entire Franchise System — BarkSuds University also captures institutional knowledge and lessons learned throughout our franchise network. As our franchisees learn, improve, and share successful practices, that knowledge can be incorporated into the University—allowing the entire BarkSuds family to learn and grow together.

Our philosophy is simple: online learning + hands-on experience + personal mentoring + franchisee-to-franchisee support + ongoing education. From the day you sign through the years you operate your BarkSuds, training and support are always within reach.

Operational and Marketing Tools:

Operational & Marketing Tools — Start Building Your Customer Base Before You Open

• BarkSuds University Marketing Library — Franchisees receive access to a growing library of marketing materials, campaigns, templates, promotional ideas, brochures, banners, social content, and successful concepts previously developed throughout the BarkSuds system. Don’t start from scratch—start with what has already worked.
• Shared Franchisee Marketing Knowledge — Successful campaigns and ideas from across our franchise network can be shared through BarkSuds University, creating an expanding institutional marketing library. Franchisees can customize proven concepts for their own local markets while saving significant time and creative expense.
• “Coming Soon” Website Presence — Soon after signing and as the location develops, new salons can receive a Coming Soon presence on the BarkSuds website, helping establish awareness well before opening day.
• Pre-Opening Lead Generation — Prospective customers visiting the website can express interest in the upcoming location, helping franchisees begin developing a database of potential customers and members before the salon opens.
• Build Memberships Before Day One — Our goal is for franchisees to open with customers already waiting. It is not uncommon for a new BarkSuds salon to have a busy appointment book immediately, with some locations serving approximately 20 dogs on their very first day.
• High-Impact “Coming Soon” Signage — Once a location is secured, we help franchisees create attention-grabbing exterior marketing, subject to landlord and local approvals. Our signature imagery—including our memorable dog in a shower cap—helps communicate immediately what BarkSuds is all about and generate curiosity about our unlimited membership concept.
• Professional Social Media Partner — Franchisees have access to our experienced marketing partner and established systems for building their local digital presence rather than having to find and manage everything independently.
• Social Media from the Beginning — Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and other relevant channels can begin promoting the salon well before opening, creating local awareness, showcasing the buildout, introducing the team, featuring dogs, explaining memberships, and building excitement toward opening day.
• Search Engine Optimization (SEO) — Digital marketing can include local SEO and search strategies designed to help dog parents discover their neighborhood BarkSuds when searching online for bathing, grooming, and related services.
• Dogs Are Marketing Gold! — Few businesses have more naturally engaging social-media content than a dog business. Beautiful dogs, transformations, baths, bubbles, personalities, before-and-afters, and happy pet parents provide an almost endless source of authentic, fun, highly shareable content.
• Traditional Marketing Support — Franchisees aren’t limited to digital advertising. BarkSuds provides access to ideas and resources for brochures, promotional materials, local partnerships, community outreach, events, banners, direct marketing, and other grassroots opportunities.
• Billboard & High-Visibility Advertising Concepts — For franchisees who want to go bigger, our system has experience with billboard advertising and other high-visibility campaigns. A giant Golden Retriever wearing a shower cap is difficult to drive past without noticing!
• Turnkey Operational Systems — Marketing works alongside BarkSuds’ established operating systems, software, appointment scheduling, membership management, training, vendor resources, purchasing guidance, and operational checklists—giving franchisees the tools to turn generated interest into recurring members.
• Ongoing Marketing—Not Just Grand Opening Marketing — The support doesn’t stop when the doors open. Franchisees continue to have access to BarkSuds University, our marketing resources, social media support, system-wide ideas, and the collective experience of the BarkSuds franchise family.

Our objective is simple: don’t wait until opening day to start looking for customers. Build the buzz, build the audience, build the appointment book, and begin building your membership base before you ever open the doors.

Financing Assistance: Available