Buying a pet grooming or boarding business in Tampa Bay
Tampa Bay has 36 established pet grooming and boarding businesses by our count: companies in business at least 15 years that still file with the state every year and aren't part of a larger group. Of those, 69% have been in business 20 years or more. Most will never be listed for sale, and many of their owners have never been asked.
What it takes to own one
Pet grooming and boarding businesses in Tampa Bay come in every size. Here's what owning one could look like at three levels, from a solid company to one of the leaders, with a small business loan covering most of the price.
- Earns about
- $59,000 a year
- Price about
- $142,000
- Your cash
- $20,000
- Could pay you
- up to $33,000 a year
- Earns about
- $141,000 a year
- Price about
- $338,000
- Your cash
- $47,000
- Could pay you
- up to $80,000 a year
- Earns about
- $208,000 a year
- Price about
- $498,000
- Your cash
- $70,000
- Could pay you
- up to $118,000 a year
Earnings are owner earnings: profit plus what the owner pays themselves, before loan payments and taxes. They and the prices are our estimates from public records, not the owners' figures, and we value companies like these at about 2.4 times a year's owner earnings. Your cash covers the down payment and closing costs, and what the business could pay you is what's left after the loan payments and the cushion lenders require. The more cash you bring, the further up you can go.
Age, size and location
Revenue is our estimate from public records, grouped into wide ranges.
| In business | Companies |
|---|---|
| Under 20 years | 11 |
| 20 to 29 years | 21 |
| 30 to 39 years | 3 |
| 40 years or more | 1 |
| Estimated yearly revenue | Companies |
|---|---|
| Under $1M | 18 |
| $1M to $2M | 2 |
| $2M to $4M | 1 |
| County | Companies |
|---|---|
| Hillsborough | 13 |
| Pinellas | 9 |
| Polk | 7 |
| Other counties | 7 |
What the best pet grooming and boarding businesses have in common
- A large base of repeat clients, with booking records, vaccination records and pet notes in the business's own software.
- Groomers who have stayed for years, and more than one person who knows each client's pets. Pet owners stay loyal to the groomer their dog tolerates.
- A facility built for animals: drainage, ventilation, separate play areas, secure fencing and surfaces that clean easily.
- Zoning and permits that clearly allow boarding and daycare at the location.
- Several services that keep clients coming back, such as daycare dogs who are also groomed and boarded.
- A safety record without serious incidents, and clear vaccination and temperament policies.
- Enough trained staff for the number of dogs in play groups, so supervision doesn't slip on busy days.
- Strong, recent online reviews, which is how most pet owners choose.
What to check before you buy
- How many clients there are, how often they come, and revenue by service.
- Each groomer's regular clients and pay arrangement, and what happens if they leave.
- Permits, zoning approvals and any complaints from neighbors about noise or odor.
- Incident history: bites, injuries, illness outbreaks, escaped pets, and any claims or lawsuits.
- Insurance, including coverage for animals in the business's care.
- Facility condition: air conditioning, drainage, kennels, fencing and grooming equipment.
- The lease, especially clauses that allow animals and overnight boarding.
- Prepaid packages and daycare memberships you'd have to honor.
- Online reviews over time, especially any mentioning injuries or illness, and how the business responded.
- Hurricane plans: generators, evacuation arrangements for boarded animals, and how the business handled past storms.
Questions to ask the owner
- How many active clients do you have, and how often do they come in?
- Which services bring in the most revenue and profit?
- How long have your groomers been with you, and how are they paid?
- What permits does the business hold, and has the county or a neighbor ever raised concerns?
- Have you had any serious incidents with pets, and how did you handle them?
- How busy is boarding in your slowest and busiest months?
- What does the lease say about animals, noise and overnight stays?
To learn what these companies do, which licenses they need and how ownership works, read our full guide to buying a pet grooming or boarding business in Florida.
Owning a company in Tampa Bay
The local economy
Tampa Bay, as we draw it, runs from Citrus County south through Hernando, Pasco, Pinellas and Hillsborough, and east into Polk: Tampa, St. Petersburg, Clearwater, Brandon, Wesley Chapel, Brooksville, Inverness, Lakeland and Winter Haven. Tampa is the business center, with Port Tampa Bay, Tampa International Airport, the University of South Florida and MacDill Air Force Base, home to the headquarters of U.S. Central Command and U.S. Special Operations Command. Financial services, insurance and health care employ many people, and the Gulf beaches of Pinellas bring tourists and seasonal residents.
Polk County sits on Interstate 4 between Tampa and Orlando and has become a center for warehouses and distribution, alongside its older citrus and phosphate industries. To the north, Pasco, Hernando and Citrus are more suburban and rural, with many retirees. Home service companies, the building trades, medical practices and auto businesses all have a deep customer base across the region.
What's different about owning a company here
Hurricane Helene's storm surge in September 2024 and Hurricane Milton two weeks later both hit the region hard. Flood zones and insurance costs now matter in any deal near the water. Ask how the business came through those storms, what it claimed, and whether its building sits in a flood zone.
The labor market is deep by Florida standards, though skilled tradespeople can still be hard to find. New homes have pushed north and east into Pasco and eastern Hillsborough, and along Interstate 4 in Polk, bringing demand for services with them. Coastal Pinellas is more seasonal than inland Tampa or Lakeland. The bay itself shapes a service company's territory: crossing a bridge at rush hour can turn a short distance into a long drive, so look at where the customers actually are.