Dogtopia franchise coming to Homewood – Birmingham Business Journal – The Business Journals

Local canine owners can expect to see a new doggy day care opening soon.
Brothers Carlton and Henson Millsap are opening Dogtopia of Homewood in October and plan to open several more locations in the greater Birmingham area to tap into growing demand.
Henson said the duo targeted Homewood for the first Alabama franchise location based on the unmet demand in the area and because they think it’s a great fit from a brand perspective.
“Dogtopia is first and foremost about day care. We offer the full range of services including boarding and spa, but day care is our core focus,” Henson Millsap said.
Located at 1722 27th Court South, Dogtopia is situated behind Ed’s Pet World and next to the new Cahaba Cycles location.
Murray Construction is the general contractor for the project.
“We’ll develop as many as Birmingham can support. We’re excited about the future opportunity, but right now we’re very focused on getting this first one up and running,” Carlton Millsap said.
Being confined to the house through most of the pandemic spurred an increase in new pet owners, but returning to the office has left some pets without their daily companions.
“Two things happened during Covid. First, millions of people acquired dogs. One in five U.S. households adopted a pet during Covid,” Carlton Millsap said. “Second, people were at home all day spending more time with their dogs than ever before, building up these relationships. And now as people have returned to the office, they’re thinking ‘Do I really want to leave my dog laying around the house alone and bored all day?'”
The Montgomery natives have lived and worked in Birmingham for the past six to 10 years. Both decided to quit their jobs — one was a lawyer and the other worked for Regions — to operate the local Dogtopia brand full time.
The Dogtopia franchise is based out of Phoenix, Arizona, and is currently closing on 200 locations nationwide. The Homewood facility hones in on a day care experience, ditching the traditional kennel run in exchange for three large open-style play rooms with homestyle crates inside.
“Our transparency is a big differentiator. Dogs can’t come home and tell you about their day. Our playroom cameras are live through our website and app at all times during open-play, so Dogtopia pet parents are never left guessing what is going on “behind the scenes,” Henson Millsap said.
About 20 employees will staff the new location with two salaried employees and the rest will be a mixture of full- and part-time positions. Both the sales manager and general manager have already been hired with staffing to take place over the next few weeks.
“Our brand’s support office [also] includes a veterinarian, a dog behaviorist and an environmental biologist. Every aspect of our day care has been designed by experts, from our canine coach training program to our pet-safe cleaning products to our dog evaluation process. So, it’ll be a very professionalized operation with a highly trained staff,” Carlton Millsap said.
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