We were lucky to catch up with Liz Gapinski recently and have shared our conversation below.

Liz, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. So, naming is such a challenge. How did you come up with the name of your brand?

I named my salon after my childhood best friend, my cat, Sunshine! I truly believe that he is the one who sparked my love of animals and I wanted his legacy to live on.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I started grooming in 2015. Throughout the years I have continued my education in not just the grooming industry but the pet industry in general. Attending conventions, trying new products, taking seminars, pet first aid and cpr courses, and I am now working on getting my fear free grooming certification. I moved to a brand new area for me (Northeast Minneapolis) and opened a salon with no clientele and a passion for color.
I have always loved the creative side of the grooming industry and always wanted to do more. It’s so much fun to do and the dogs love all of the extra attention they get from looking so fabulous! You can do anything from a splash of color on the tips of the tail or ears, a fake “tattoo” for your best friend, or even turn your dog into a giraffe!
I am most proud of the fact that I am able to give back by volunteering my services to Underdog Rescue by grooming their foster dogs in need.

What’s worked well for you in terms of a source for new clients?

Honestly, word of mouth. Most of my clients were referred to me by another client. I even had someone tell me that they got stopped on a walk by someone who wanted to know where their dog got groomed.

Do you sell on your site, or do you use a platform like Amazon, Etsy, Cratejoy, etc?

I make all my own pet accessories and I just recently opened an Etsy to be able to sell them online. I previously sold them via my salon Instagram but wanted to be able to have an actual online shop.

Contact Info:

• Website: Www.thesunshinegroomer.com
• Instagram: @thesunshinegroomer
• Facebook: Facebook.com/thesunshinegroomer