Another brilliant business idea!

vraiblonde

Board Mommy
PREMO Member
Patron
A chain of budget hotels - or even a service in partnership with a budget hotel chain (LaQuinta, I'm looking at you!) - designed for pet owners who want to take their pet on vacation with them.

If you go to, say, Disney World there are several hotels in the area that allow pets, and there are even a few local boarding facilities. But they are ridiculous expensive, and who wants to leave their dog at some strange boarding facility? Everything pet travel related is geared toward rich people who will pay $100s for Fido to have a spa day or some other nonsense. But what about middle income people?

Apollo hates hates hates to sit in a strange hotel room by himself, even long enough for me to go get dinner and bring it back to the room. He would definitely not be happy if I took most of the day to do Epcot. So my service would be two-fold: you can either bring your dog in and he can play at the facility, or someone can come babysit your pooch in the hotel room and keep him company. Or, if your dog is more mellow, you can just get someone to come walk him at a certain time.

What would make us different from what already exists is that we'd be partnered with a hotel chain, which gives us credibility and sets us apart from Billy Bob and Wanda's Doggie Day Camp and Chinese Buffet, plus our pricing would be affordable for middle income people: Our money would be made on volume, not margin or "what the market will bear". Plus we'd be a national venture so folks who've used our services in Orlando would feel comfortable using us in Gatlinburg or Sandusky or New York City or San Antonio.

It's a win for LaQuinta because it would also make pet owners more likely to stay at their hotel. For example, when I go to NYC I stay all over the place with no loyalty to a particular hotel. But if there were a reasonably priced hotel that would also take good care of Apollo while I'm pissing around Chelsea and Greenwich, I would never stay anywhere else.

Great idea, huh?
 
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frequentflier

happy to be living
A chain of budget hotels - or even a service in partnership with a budget hotel chain (LaQuinta, I'm looking at you!) - designed for pet owners who want to take their pet on vacation with them.

If you go to, say, Disney World there are several hotels in the area that allow pets, and there are even a few local boarding facilities. But they are ridiculous expensive, and who wants to leave their dog at some strange boarding facility? Everything pet travel related is geared toward rich people who will pay $100s for Fido to have a spa day or some other nonsense. But what about middle income people?

Apollo hates hates hates to sit in a strange hotel room by himself, even long enough for me to go get dinner and bring it back to the room. He would definitely not be happy if I took most of the day to do Epcot. So my service would be two-fold: you can either bring your dog in and he can play at the facility, or someone can come babysit your pooch in the hotel room and keep him company. Or, if your dog is more mellow, you can just get someone to come walk him at a certain time.

What would make us different from what already exists is that we'd be partnered with a hotel chain, which gives us credibility and sets us apart from Billy Bob and Wanda's Doggie Day Camp, plus our pricing would be affordable for middle income people: Our money would be made on volume, not margin or "what the market will bear". Plus we'd be a national venture so folks who've used our services in Orlando would feel comfortable using us in Gatlinburg or Sandusky or New York City or San Antonio.

It's a win for LaQuinta because it would also make pet owners more likely to stay at their hotel. For example, when I go to NYC I stay all over the place with no loyalty to a particular hotel. But if there were a reasonably priced hotel that would also take good care of Apollo while I'm pissing around Chelsea and Greenwich, I would never stay anywhere else.

Great idea, huh?

Have you started writing a business plan?
 

vraiblonde

Board Mommy
PREMO Member
Patron
Have you started writing a business plan?

No, because I'm already sucked into a business with no compelling desire to dump it and do something else. But some day I'll get tired of watching dysfunctionals tard fight on the forums and it's nice to have a backup plan. :yay:

I do wish I were more than one person, though, so I can start all the businesses I want before I die.
 

tommyjo

New Member
There are already lots of local pet sitters who will come out to your home and take care of your pet while you are away. These folks provide a viable option to the boarding kennel or traveling with a pet.

As for the hotel:

Very unlikely you would be able to offer "cheap" or "inexpensive" hotel rates for people and pets. Health rules probably require must higher level cleaning after each visit...insurance rates would be much higher to deal with potential disease or bites. Imagine the added cost of cleaning the hotel due to one pet with fleas! Site would also have to have a fairly large "pet walk" area...land that would provide no revenue and add to the cleanup expense. These would significantly increase costs that would have to be passed along to guests.

Then you would have the issue of demand. How many people would take their family with them to Disney World?
 

vraiblonde

Board Mommy
PREMO Member
Patron
There are already lots of local pet sitters who will come out to your home and take care of your pet while you are away. These folks provide a viable option to the boarding kennel or traveling with a pet.

As for the hotel:

Very unlikely you would be able to offer "cheap" or "inexpensive" hotel rates for people and pets. Health rules probably require must higher level cleaning after each visit...insurance rates would be much higher to deal with potential disease or bites. Imagine the added cost of cleaning the hotel due to one pet with fleas! Site would also have to have a fairly large "pet walk" area...land that would provide no revenue and add to the cleanup expense. These would significantly increase costs that would have to be passed along to guests.

Then you would have the issue of demand. How many people would take their family with them to Disney World?

  1. Learn to read
  2. Go back and read my original post
  3. Comment

I am talking specifically about a service for people who want to take their pet on vacation with them. If they do not want to take their pet on vacation with them, they can make whatever arrangements they usually make and that has nothing whatsoever to do with my idea.

There are already hotel chains that are pet friendly - LaQuinta is one of them, which is why I specifically mentioned them. They already charge a fee for pets, and already have a walk area for dogs. My service would be an add-on to what they already have in place.

People already take their pets on vacation with them. Nothing new and actually quite common. When I am road tripping with Apollo, we have never one time been the only pair at the LaQuinta dog walk area - there are usually quite a few people with dogs. When we go to rest areas for a potty break, there are numerous people there walking their dogs. In fact Apollo has never, not one time, been the only dog out there.

I thought my OP was crystal clear, written in plain English with no big confusing words. :confused:
 

Bay_Kat

Tropical
Is there a more negative person on the forums than tommyjo? Never a positive thing to say. It must really suck to be that miserable.

Vrai, I think you're on to something, I'd love to be able to take my dog on vacation, it's really hard to find places that will allow pets.
 

vraiblonde

Board Mommy
PREMO Member
Patron
Like, look at this place:

Pet Friendly Hotels in Virginia :: Pet Packages :: 80 Acres to Explore

Pet-friendly as all get out BUT they don't want you leaving your dog in the room while you hit up the local attractions. The reason they don't, I'm sure, is because the dog gets lonely and starts barking or being destructive. How hard would it be to have a service where someone will come keep the dog company, walk it and play with it while you're gone? Or you can drop him off for a play date on your way to the vineyards.

I'm telling you...
 

MMM_donuts

New Member
Man, that would be awesome. I hate leaving my dogs behind. It's very expensive and I worry about them the entire time.
 

Roman

Active Member
My dogs go almost every where with me, and I am more proned to go to Dog Friendly places when I do travel. I think you have something that deserves a pre-plan!!
 

Larry Gude

Strung Out
It's a great idea....but...

...So my service would be two-fold: you can either bring your dog in and he can play at the facility, or someone can come babysit your pooch in the hotel room and keep him company. Or, if your dog is more mellow, you can just get someone to come walk him at a certain time.

...our pricing would be affordable for middle income people...

What would that be, 'affordable'? Someone to come be Apollo's buddy for the day, you're talking I would guess at least $20 an hour in NYC. Even if they are only paying some kid $10, they're gonna want to make something on it. Even in Council Bluffs, it would have to cost at least $10 an hour. For an 8 hour day out and about, are 'middle income' people gonna pay an extra $80-100 a day?


It's a win for LaQuinta because it would also make pet owners more likely to stay at their hotel... There would also be a lot of people LESS likely to stay their BECAUSE of all the pets.

Great idea, huh?

Certainly a great idea but, I don't see how you get around this being pretty expensive.
 

vraiblonde

Board Mommy
PREMO Member
Patron
What would that be, 'affordable'? Someone to come be Apollo's buddy for the day, you're talking I would guess at least $20 an hour in NYC. Even if they are only paying some kid $10, they're gonna want to make something on it. Even in Council Bluffs, it would have to cost at least $10 an hour. For an 8 hour day out and about, are 'middle income' people gonna pay an extra $80-100 a day?

It would have to be around $20-25/hr, like you said, but people aren't going to use the service every day. It would be much cheaper for them to bring the dog to the facility, and even cheaper than that to have someone come walk the dog while they're gone.

People who take their dog on vacation with them usually do things that the dog can do as well, otherwise there's no point in taking them at all. The service wouldn't take the place of long-term kenneling, but more for say you and L decide you want to take Sabi camping with you, but want to take a day to hit up a brewery tour and sit around eating and drinking beer after. That's when you'd call us to come walk her, or keep her company if she needs it, or even drop her off so she can run around the facility while you're doing human things. You wouldn't do that every day.

My own personal experience would be Apollo and I are on a road trip through TN and I stop a few days in Gatlinburg. Most of what I'd do, he'd come with me. But when I want to go ziplining, I'd call this service and they'd come babysit him while I'm gone. Or I'd drop him off for the day.

There would also be a lot of people LESS likely to stay their BECAUSE of all the pets.
LaQuinta already welcomes pets. I would think children would be a bigger deterrent than dogs, yet hotels offer "your child stays free" all the time.
 

Chasey_Lane

Salt Life
Great idea IF the hotels are pet-only. I don't want to have my allergies go whack because Fido can't stay home alone. And I also don't want to hear "bark, bark, bark" all night when Fido is afraid of a thunderstorm.
 

vraiblonde

Board Mommy
PREMO Member
Patron
Great idea IF the hotels are pet-only. I don't want to have my allergies go whack because Fido can't stay home alone. And I also don't want to hear "bark, bark, bark" all night when Fido is afraid of a thunderstorm.
Once again, many hotels already allow pets. Obviously we wouldn't be working with hotels that do not allow pets.


:banghead:
 
It's a great idea....but...



Certainly a great idea but, I don't see how you get around this being pretty expensive.

I agree.

vrai - My guess is that you're (casually) underestimating the operating costs and thus the pricing levels that would be possible, but I could be wrong. A better business model might be as a third party agent that connects local pet service providers with pet-loving travelers. Even still the promotional costs associated with establishing the brand would seem substantial, maybe prohibitive. But with enough elbow grease and salesmanship... perhaps not.


Oh... and I have a brilliant business idea. It's not that brilliant actually, but the time is probably right. If you (generic) can scrounge up $2 million or so in eager investment capital, I'll tell you all about it. :smile:
 

Larry Gude

Strung Out
It would have to be around $20-25/hr, like you said, but people aren't going to use the service every day. It would be much cheaper for them to bring the dog to the facility, and even cheaper than that to have someone come walk the dog while they're gone.

People who take their dog on vacation with them usually do things that the dog can do as well, otherwise there's no point in taking them at all. The service wouldn't take the place of long-term kenneling, but more for say you and L decide you want to take Sabi camping with you, but want to take a day to hit up a brewery tour and sit around eating and drinking beer after. That's when you'd call us to come walk her, or keep her company if she needs it, or even drop her off so she can run around the facility while you're doing human things. You wouldn't do that every day.

My own personal experience would be Apollo and I are on a road trip through TN and I stop a few days in Gatlinburg. Most of what I'd do, he'd come with me. But when I want to go ziplining, I'd call this service and they'd come babysit him while I'm gone. Or I'd drop him off for the day.


LaQuinta already welcomes pets. I would think children would be a bigger deterrent than dogs, yet hotels offer "your child stays free" all the time.

I think that would be THE winner; basically, a kennel at the hotel. Pooch is with you when you're there, if he's mellow when you leave him, as you say, , you pay to have him walked once or twice, otherwise, take him to the kennel. Staff, like the pound, simply walk and play with each animal as per owners directions.

That I can see as real attractive; you know you've 'dog' people taking care who take care of dogs ALL day every day; not the maids third assistant Consuela who is think more of using him for pasole than playing with him.

And the cost would be; what, giving each animal what, 10 minutes or so at a time every other hour, 6 per hour per person, so, if your dog gets some play every other hour, that's 12 dogs per 1 person, 2 hours, 8 hour shift, 4 times 12 is 48 dogs, 1 staff member. Call pay $15 an hour, average, $20 all told, taxes, etc, so, about $3.33 per dog per hour or, for a six hour outing, $20.
I can see that, easy, on a trip as you describe.

So, a dog sitter charge, 10 minutes play/pee break every two hours, under $5an hour, staff is paying for itself. The hotel eats the infrastructure costs to draw more business. If you run about 60% occupancy on, what, 200 rooms, and push that up to, what, 90% because you've 'Gone to the dogs', that's 60 more rooms filled at, what, $80 a night, or nearly $5k a day.

That's a great plan, I would think, Varia.
 
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