Grooming is growing in China

Rapid development

Over the last 20 years in China, the pet market has developed rapidly into the fast-growing market we see today. Hand in hand with this development, China’s grooming industry has also started to grow as a professional segment and Chinese groomers are increasingly being recognised on the international groomer platforms. 

Due to the limited living space, in most Chinese cities, smaller dogs are especially popular. These small dogs need grooming to be seen as nice and also as trendy. The fashion element plays an important role. 

Meantime, there are now 2,000 grooming schools in China, to train the groomers. To boost grooming further in China, an important tool is WeChat: a messaging and calling app that allows you to stay connected easily. Groomers share their work via Wechat, via friends, circles or public accounts. 

A plus for pet retail

In China, the majority of pet products are bought via e-commerce platforms. Therefore, the traditional pet retailer is forced to add additional services such as grooming to the shop concept to compete. Grooming is a popular service to add. 

This also means that the groomer needs to stay up to date on the newest trends and sophisticated skills. 

At the Headman Grooming School, there are 20 C level groomers, and 40 higher B and A level groomers – an indication of how seriously pet lovers take technique.

Style trends

Consumers’ growing interest in the latest grooming styles and trends is also reflected in the increasing number of grooming dog shows that are held. 

• What are main trends at these shows? It appears that:
• Precision and the technique of the groomer is important.
• China does have its own grooming style of the dogs. For instance, the Asian Meng style. This style is also picked up by other countries such as Japan. For groomers it is the challenge to outperform others in this style. 
• Creative styling usually involves fur dye, but this is not very popular in China due to its higher cost and because it is less practical. Besides, the Chinese Animal Protection Organisation is against it due to the negative influence on pets’ health, and the long application time which is considered as inhumane.