We’re Three Years Old!
The ability to be celebrating an anniversary post-pandemic is a privilege we’re so grateful to have this year.
We wanted to take a moment to express our gratitude and appreciation for allowing The Petropolitan to not just survive but flourish over the past three years. Your support of our locally owned small business allows us to provide employment to 30 Calgarians going into the year ahead and support a pet-owning community that’s never been better!
The pandemic impacted businesses worldwide, as we’re all too aware, but women-owned businesses particularly felt the pandemic pinch. The pandemic affected Calgary a week before our 1st anniversary. When the first lockdown went into place, offices and schools were closed and unable to contemplate the future. We thought we’d see our employees and clients in just two weeks. What was just supposed to be two weeks turned into 4 months, some panic about how long the business could sustain itself after just a year of business set in. Government loans were extended, and conversations with supportive landlords were had. Busy professionals, those working from home in condos, front-line workers and essential staff members continued bringing their pets in for daycare and overnight. People had to travel to attend to sick family members or move children home from University.
We reduced our operating hours and worked 12-hour days for about 4 months with our two kids in tow, homeschooling between walks and playgroups from offices that are now finally occupied by employees again. They read aloud to dogs in playrooms and learned how to make reservations and check dogs in and out. Our suites became secondary bedrooms for them to hang out, watch TV, and do crafts to ease the stress. The streets were empty; we rode bikes and played fetch down the middle of 9th Avenue with many minutes passing before hearing a car coming. Our staff kitchen resembled our kitchen from home with a fully stocked fridge and half of our dishes and appliances so we could prepare most of our meals. We drew all over the asphalt and sidewalk with chalk, played hide and go seek in the facility with the walkie-talkies, cut paper hearts for the windows, and created hurdles for the dogs to jump over with toilet paper.
We recently found a pair of fuzzy, kid-sized slippers in the storage room, a funny reminder of how recently that was a weird reality.
Four months in, we were able to gradually start bringing team members back as wage subsidies became available to provide us much-needed support. We did curbside drop-offs and pick-ups, installed a permanent gate on our porch, and had clients calling us at the door. Things picked up when restrictions were lifted and bottomed out again every time rules changed, and people and children were sent home from work and school. It was a crazy-making experience for any business owner in the service industry.
So how then did The Petropolitan make it through the pandemic, with every work from home order and lockdown when people weren’t travelling or going to work? We had you.
We know you have a choice when choosing a care provider for your best friend, and we are so lucky you chose us. You were willing to share your pets with us when you needed to attend to another important aspect of your life, whether it was your career, family, or the all-important need to unplug and reset in a crazy world. We’re happy we could be here to support you!
In celebration, we have some fantastic things coming for you, your pets, and our ever-growing team this year and can’t wait to share them with you in the weeks to come.
Just as puppies show resilience, bouncing back from adversity and bumps as they learn to navigate the world, The Petropolitan adapted to the demands of pet owners during the pandemic. This resilience and commitment to a standard of care allowed us to continue providing an essential service to your pets while also creating employment opportunities for Calgarians when layoffs and downsizing impacted businesses of all sizes.
Focusing on building strong relationships and opportunities, The Petropolitan grew our female-led team of incredible pet care providers over the past couple of years. We’ve added managerial and administrative positions in our grooming, pet care, and marketing departments, bringing the total number of Calgarians employed up to 30 this month!
What we want for our own pets, we have created for and provide to you. Our luxury amenities and the care standards we hold ourselves to align us with you and your pets, and we couldn’t be more appreciative.
We look forward to celebrating many more anniversaries with our clients and team for all your dog years to come.
Happy Birthday, Petropolitan! ?