Senior Mud Room Grooming Technician and Instructor

For the last 30 years, Mud Bay has provided solutions for itchy, skin-irritated dogs through food and supplements. We always believed we could offer more. When we began exploring offering services to pet owners, we spent time researching everything from self-serve dog washes to full-service dog spas. To Mud Bay, it felt like there was something in the middle that was missing: a dedicated service to address skin and coat conditions.

The Mud Room was born from a desire to help pet owners care for their companions in more ways. We welcome all dogs to the Mud Room. We work to offer a low-stress environment and move through an appointment at the dog’s pace. The Mud Room’s service menu focuses on skin and coat care, with an emphasis on bathing and grooming that improve the health and comfort of the dog. We strive to make it easy for a customer to understand the cost of their service and make the right decision for their pet with inclusive pricing to minimize add-ons. We work with our clients to find the best solutions for their dog using a wide selection of quality shampoos and conditioners, dematting and deshedding, and grooming targeted to keep the dog comfortable, healthy, and easy to maintain for the client. We work with our retail to recommend diet and supplement solutions that will address skin and coat concerns from the inside-out while the Mud Room works from the outside-in. We offer innovative services like brushout subscriptions to keep dogs free of matting in between service appointments.

The Mud Room launched in October of 2019 and we are still new to this discipline. We are looking for a Senior Mud Room Technician and Instructor to help us grow the Mud Room to more locations and more regions. This person will not only be highly skilled in the craft of dog grooming and have an understanding of dog behavior and handling, but they will also be a strong leader and gifted teacher of these things. The Senior Mud Room Technician will work closely with the New Business team as we recruit, train, and develop new Mud Room Technicians. They will also work closely with the NB team as we develop processes and procedures for the growing Mud Room.

WHAT OUR SENIOR TECHNICIAN WILL DO:

• Work alongside and lead the Mud Room team at our Olympia Mud Room location
• Recruit and train new Mud Room technicians
• Work toward expansion of the Mud Room to other regions, which may include extended travel to recruit and train Mud Room teams in other locations
• Assist with the creation of a training program in which all technicians will participate
• Have a voice in the future of the Mud Room and advocate for the needs of a growing grooming business focused on skin and coat care
• See opportunities for process improvement and proactively make changes
• Communicate often with New Business leaders and other departments as collaboration is needed

Required Skills

• Resonates with Mud Bay’s mission

to contribute to the health of dogs and cats and to the happiness of those who care for them as we build a strong company that we are proud of

• and the Mud Room’s mission

to provide professional skin and coat care in a low-stress environment

• Is highly skilled in dog bathing and grooming with 7+ years of professional experience
• Is a gifted grooming teacher and mentor and has demonstrated experience doing so
• Understands and is passionate about dog behavior and safe dog handling
• Believes that the ideal environment for dogs and staff is calm and low stress
• Can work with each dog as an individual, adapting a service to meet the needs of the dog when it comes to skin and coat health as well as behavior
• Has a portfolio of their best work and is proud to share it
• May have achieved master groomer certification through NDGAA, IPGI or another organization
• Understands and believes that good nutrition is key to maintaining skin and coat health
• Finds their passion in working with owners and their dogs to improve skin and coat health and in helping to teach and develop staff who are new to dogs and to dog services
• Is able to adapt their teaching style to the learning style of their students
• Is patient and understanding with people and pets
• Has a deep knowledge of dog physiology, nutrition, behavior, problems and solutions
• Is certified or willing to become certified in animal and people first aid
• Is willing and able to quickly get up to speed on Mud Room practices, relevant Mud Bay practices and other material that Mud Room Muddies are expected to know
• Is organized and efficient in their work
• Takes ownership of personal and team effectiveness and productivity
• Contributes to others' effectiveness and productivity
• Is willing and able to learn and effectively use our electronic scheduling and record-keeping program
• Is adaptable and embraces change with an open heart and open mind
• Generates new ideas and is eager to consider different approaches
• Collaborates with team members well and often
• Communicates proactively and productively; understands when something should be shared, including what needs urgent communication
• Communicates with customers, colleagues and business partners in a clear way that is guided by Mud Bay’s mission, values and culture
• Seeks and gives feedback with an open heart and open mind in order to grow and improve
• Is willing to work in Thurston County and travel as the Mud Room expands into other Washington and Oregon regions

Required Experience

• Resonates with Mud Bay’s mission

to contribute to the health of dogs and cats and to the happiness of those who care for them as we build a strong company that we are proud of

• and the Mud Room’s mission

to provide professional skin and coat care in a low-stress environment

• Is highly skilled in dog bathing and grooming with 7+ years of professional experience
• Is a gifted grooming teacher and mentor and has demonstrated experience doing so
• Understands and is passionate about dog behavior and safe dog handling
• Believes that the ideal environment for dogs and staff is calm and low stress
• Can work with each dog as an individual, adapting a service to meet the needs of the dog when it comes to skin and coat health as well as behavior
• Has a portfolio of their best work and is proud to share it
• May have achieved master groomer certification through NDGAA, IPGI or another organization
• Understands and believes that good nutrition is key to maintaining skin and coat health
• Finds their passion in working with owners and their dogs to improve skin and coat health and in helping to teach and develop staff who are new to dogs and to dog services
• Is able to adapt their teaching style to the learning style of their students
• Is patient and understanding with people and pets
• Has a deep knowledge of dog physiology, nutrition, behavior, problems and solutions
• Is certified or willing to become certified in animal and people first aid
• Is willing and able to quickly get up to speed on Mud Room practices, relevant Mud Bay practices and other material that Mud Room Muddies are expected to know
• Is organized and efficient in their work
• Takes ownership of personal and team effectiveness and productivity
• Contributes to others' effectiveness and productivity
• Is willing and able to learn and effectively use our electronic scheduling and record-keeping program
• Is adaptable and embraces change with an open heart and open mind
• Generates new ideas and is eager to consider different approaches
• Collaborates with team members well and often
• Communicates proactively and productively; understands when something should be shared, including what needs urgent communication
• Communicates with customers, colleagues and business partners in a clear way that is guided by Mud Bay’s mission, values and culture
• Seeks and gives feedback with an open heart and open mind in order to grow and improve
• Is willing to work in Thurston County and travel as the Mud Room expands into other Washington and Oregon regions