We were lucky to catch up with Alec DeGroot recently and have shared our conversation below.
Alec, appreciate you joining us today. Let’s start with the story of your mission. What should we know?
My mission is to service as many pets and pet owners as I can with the tools and resources I have. While each client has different needs for their pet, I find the time in each day to fulfill, meet, and exceed the expectations they have for their pet. I am looking to expand my company to have fellow dog and pet enthusiasts assist in giving the four legged family members that give us the joy and excitement each day the proper care and love they need while their owners are away on vacation or at work.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
I grew up in our modern culture thinking that in order to be successful I had to work as many hours a day at the fastest, most intense accuracy for the most years. It was almost a decade into working for retail that I realized that the more I worked the less freedom I had. While I thought was successful with a title to my name, I still felt the missing purpose to my life. It wasn’t until I quit my job and underwent serious soul searching that I came across my passion for dogs and animals. I already had the management, networking, and professionalism I learned from my previous career which I put all my energy into my new passion. I came up with the idea that I could be outside enjoying life with dogs while still being able to keep up with life’s busy demands. I treat every beloved pet as if they were my own striving to give better than your neighbor’s service sending constant communication and pictures to keep the client at ease with priceless peace of mind. Each client has different needs whether it be a short walk, a long run, play ball in the yard, feeding, etc.
I am most proud that the dogs I currently work with have grown so much in their behaviors. For example, I have a pack of two dachshunds and a basset hound who would bark at every dog they passed on the walk. With a lot of patience, research, and training they no longer bark at dogs when we pass. What I offer goes beyond dog walking, I provide pet owners with tips, demonstrations, and problem solving skills to help them better understand their dogs needs, behaviors, and how to communicate with them to get the desired result of say getting their dog to stop barking at other dogs they pass. Helping both human and canine co-exist in a gentle peaceful manner gives me the most sense of purpose,
What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?
What helped build my reputation within the pet care industry started with doing more than simply showing up, walking a dog, and leaving. I build relationships and offer peace of mind to each of my clients whom can rely on me to fulfill their pets needs. Once a couple of clients got to know and see the quality of my work they would let friends or neighbors know about my excellent service which brought about more business.
How do you keep in touch with clients and foster brand loyalty?
I reach out to each of my clients to find out their needs for the week and schedule accordingly. After each session with their pup I send a detailed outline of the walk, a GPS of where we went, and pictures/videos of their pup enjoying themselves. I strive to make each walk seem as if the owner was right by their side walking them.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: @pawfice_space
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alec-degroot-781811137