Shell dealer Goran Raven is the second forecourt operator to install a Dog Wash Express pet cleaning station: a new to sector offer which has an inbuilt loyalty programme, and a no-cost revenue share model.
Unlike most leasing or outright purchase options on the market, the supplier Self Servex pays for the cost of the washer, cleaning materials, monthly services, a weekly deep clean, and marketing.
Its dog wash/drier machine also recognises bank cards used in previous transactions, so that regular customers can be rewarded for multiple visits with a buy a certain number of washes and get the next one free type deals.
It also has a digital media screen on which host retailers can advertise products available in their stores: with pet treats and dog food being an obvious choice, say business partners Lee Sibley and Dan Nicol.
They have who have big ambitions for their business which has so far installed 14 of their machines in various types of sites from pubs to a beachside location. They plan to have 100 of the stations in place by March next year, and, they say, to eventually become the ‘Costa’ of the dog wash world.
The first petrol station operator to take a Dog Wash Express unit was Praveen Rolson Dsouza’s Turners Green BP site, near Reading which went live with the dog washing last month.
Sibley and Nicol say that they will achieve their target thanks to their model of engaging with the community; incentivising users to post photos of their dogs being washed in the units on social media; and holding dog breed specific promotional days at host sites.
Raven, who introduced a machine just over a week ago, next to jet washes at the back of his Shell forecourt in Abridge, Essex, is seeing three or four customers using the dog wash a day. It fits his site because it complements an animal feed business run by his daughter at the same location, and he says he expects usage to increase during the wetter autumn and winter.
“We’ve had a lot of interest on social media, and it [Self Servex] is a simple company to deal with: honest and straightforward,” says Raven.
Customers typically pay £10 for a 10-minute wash, says Self Servex, with options including a conditioner, flea and tick shampoo, an extra rinse, and two levels of drier power. There is also a 30-second disinfectant cycle for customers to use to clean the machine at the start and end of their programme.
Self Servex says the machines typically provide hosts with an annual income of £1,500 to £2,500, which it says compares with a parcel locker – approximately the same size – which will be closer to £700 to £800.
Sibley says that his company, which holds a series of site surveys to establish whether a location is suitable to take one of its machines, is now looking to provide what he describes as “passive income” for other petrol stations with “under-utilised space”.
He adds: “We are quite selective. It has to be the correct area with enough chimney pots. We are not in the market to sell a machine. We pay for the machine, operate it, and build the brand around it.
“The ideal location will be on a petrol station with a decent amount of space, next to valeting or laundry machines. It needs to be within a residential area, or a place that people can walk and drive to with their dogs, ideally near to a park or country walk.”
