The Next Big Membership Business Might Be a 24,000-Square-Foot Indoor Dog Park With a Bar
The U.S. pet market is relatively recession-proof and should top $160 billion in 2026.
EXPERT OPINION BY HOWARD TULLMAN, GENERAL MANAGING PARTNER, G2T3V AND CHICAGO HIGH TECH INVESTORS @HOWARDTULLMAN1
Illustration: Inc; Photo: Getty Images
It’s hard to find anything good to say about the pain and isolation that so many people suffered during the pandemic, but for pet owners and especially single men and women, it was an amazing opportunity to head outdoors and safely meet with your neighbors and their pups, as well as interesting strangers on neutral turf with no strings attached. Pet adoptions during Covid were through the roof, and for many of us, our animals were worry sponges. Also, because work from home has now seriously taken root in more than 35 percent of all working households, millions of folks have been able to keep their new best friends and make them a major part of their daily activities and especially of their social lives.
Millennials and Gen Z make up the majority of pet owners and over 60 percent are remote workers, entrepreneurs, and retirees with flexible schedules. More than 75 percent of pet owners say that current economic conditions haven’t changed their pet spending and roughly the same percentage admit that they’re more likely to splurge on their pets than themselves. It doesn’t hurt the industry’s prospects that the U.S. pet market is relatively recession-proof and should top $160 billion in 2026.
There’s been a throwback to those imagined days in the 70s rom-coms where all it took to meet the man or woman of your dreams was a leash, a cute cocker spaniel, and a walk in the park. Outside in the fresh air—even during the worst of the pandemic—not even the omnipresent masks were a problem. Of course, the whole program was largely dependent on the weather, which back in those days was unpredictable at best. Rain, snow and bitter cold made the daily rituals tough on the pups and even harder for their parents. These days it’s even crazier.
The truth is that in most cities, you can have three seasons of weather in a single day with the occasional hailstorm, hurricane or tornado tossed in as well. This is one of the main reasons the team from Zoomies is opening a huge new indoor dog park in Chicago that takes the weather out of the equation. Chicago has about 600,000 dog-owning households with about 250,000 homes within 20 minutes of the new location. This is its initial location with rollouts planned for other major urban areas shortly. After the business model is proven out, the plan is to expand through franchising. The Zoomies environment has been designed with a powerful HVAC system that refreshes and replaces all the air in the entire 24,000 square foot facility every eight minutes as well as an impervious rubberized floor that’s easy to maintain and comfortable for the four-footed fans and their folks.
The first of its size in the U.S., it’s a clean, cool and inviting place to let your pup play with others in a safe, secure and leash-free park. There’s a separate area for smaller dogs, some enclosed outdoor runs for when the weather’s great, private runs, and a full line of daycare, boarding and grooming services. And for members, there’s an included free monthly nail trim which eliminates one of the most uncomfortable and squeamish tasks of any conscientious owner. I’d love to have a quarter for every unused nail clipper sitting and gathering dust in people’s homes after their first abortive attempt to clip their own dog’s nails. It’s not a job fit for man nor beast.
But the real bonanza at Zoomies is that it addresses the community and social component which is missing in most outdoor park visits these days where the dogs need to be leashed, the nannies and yuppie parents give you dirty looks for invading their kids’ space, and half the crowd are surly and snarky dogwalkers who could care less about anything other than getting the dump done and moving on to their next gig. These aren’t reliable regulars or partner prospects; they’re more like unhappy folks working off their community service sentences. Not the crowd you’re ever looking to hang with.
Zoomies are designed to be upscale social clubs as well as dog parks, and look to me like a fun place to spend some time with your pets and friends. There’s a full-service bar, comfortable seating, and a coffee lounge so you can get just about whatever you need to eat or drink—morning, noon or night. The business plan expects that regular monthly and annual memberships will contribute about 25 percent of the recurring revenue with other principal revenue streams including day passes and daycare, grooming and boarding, community events and private parties, and retail sales and sponsorships.
Pets represent an interesting emotional intersection—responsibility without romance—although at Zoomies there’s a strong likelihood that you might just have both. And remember that a dog is the only thing on earth that loves you more than it loves itself.
