Doggy DayCare - Research for start up

[MrsS1903]

Hi, I am in the process of being made redundant and was thinking of setting up my own doggy daycare. I have a dog of my own and currently use a daycare facility for her while I'm at work. I was hoping to reach out to current doggy daycare business that operate in the UK who could give me an idea of start up costs etc and any help or advice of what I need to be looking out for or any additional costs that I've maybe not considered. I've been doing a lot of research so understand that there is licencing fees etc. Below is a quick list of what I have pulled together. Thanks for taking the time to have a read and any advice is greatly appreciated

Rent

Licencing

Power/Utilities

Internet

Marketing

Dog Equipment

Dog Flooring

IT Equipment

IT Software

Cleaning Products (eco friendly)

Training Courses/ First Aid

DIY/Repairs

Branding

Staff

 

[Mark T Jones]

It's a good list to start from.

I'm not seeing insurance on there.

It might be a good idea to download a generic cashflow template (many banks or accountants offer them) which will guide you on wat you may have overlooked.

 

[WaveJumper]

As mentioned above insurance will definitely be required might be worth contacting our forum member @Frank the Insurance guy

A couple of links you might find interesting:

Dog Daycare Business Plan: The 2024 Getting Started Guide

Opening a pet care facility requires quite a few planning steps, and developing a dog daycare business plan is step one. Explore our guide to get started.

www.gingrapp.com

Dog day care licensing: statutory guidance for local authorities

www.gov.uk

 

[Atom London]

My partner has started a dog-walking with occasional daycare business. Her basic starting point was getting insurance and a dog first aid certificate to show trustworthiness. As it's mainly walking with some day care for only up to 2 dogs, she hasn't needed any more at this point, all of her clients are word of mouth so far. Are you thinking of having a rented space then? When we were looking into similar businesses that would offer the same, a lot of them offered pick up and drop off so depending on the area you are thinking of servicing, you may want to consider transport too.

 

[SillyBill]

You have the basics well covered there. We have a few more categories that are also pretty generic and may be worth separating out. If it helps:

"Stationery and Print" ...as that can add up over a year.
"Telephone"....covering mobiles, landline rentals, VOIP etc.
"Accountancy"...if outsourcing, costs to do accounts and/or bookkeeping
"Environmental Costs & Waste"...i.e. costs to remove general waste/recycling bins from site weekly/monthly etc.
"Motor Expenses"...any business related costs of motoring in there including mileage claims
"Professional charges"...anything pertaining to professional services not otherwise provided by an accountant (lawyers etc.), doubt you'd have much need there but a common one to have
"Miscellaneous"...my favourite, anything which doesn't get easily grouped. Surprised how much spend can fall into there.

We would also include business rates in property related costs so something like "Rent & Rates". Quite a few others but beyond the above and your own list your very into business specific stuff.

 

[MBE2017]

Stick depreciation on as well. Better to allow for it from day one than as an after thought.