Today we’d like to introduce you to Aaron Hill.
Hi Aaron, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
I began my career in 2004 walking dogs for a small established business in Santa Monica. After working under and alongside the owner of the business for a couple of years, it became clear that my boss was looking to sell her company and move on to something else. I talked it over with my wife and after some convincing, she agreed that I should buy it and see what I could do with it. I borrowed some money and began my career as a small business owner in February 2006!
In the ensuing sixteen plus years, I have expanded the business to include boarding, daycare and after studying at the world-renowned Karen Pryor Academy, I became a certified animal trainer in 2010.
Early on, owning Pets in the City Inc was something that felt like a side job that I would use to supplement going to Graduate School. I never imagined in those early days that it would grow to be as big as it is now. However, after a few years and lots of hard work, I slowly started envisioning where I could take this business! We have survived the economic meltdown of 2009 and thrived during a global pandemic in the last two years…..and business has never been better!
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
There have definitely been some growing pains along the way. As mentioned, the economic collapse of 2009 certainly stalled business for a bit as some clients lost jobs and tightened their purse strings at home. The Covid Pandemic of the past couple of years certainly rocked our business for around four months in early 2020. However, an amazing thing happened as 2020 turned into the summer months. As more and more families were “trapped” at home with no in person work or school, parents were looking for something to keep their kids busy and engaged…. so dog and puppy adoption went through the roof! By the end of June 2020, I had never been busier with training! That trend has only continued to grow in the past 18 months which has allowed me to pivot the focus of my business more to training and less walking, something I had been hoping to do for years.
I have been very fortunate in having some great long-term employees with me for years as we grew as a company! The pandemic slowdown unfortunately forced many of my employees to leave Los Angeles for good which has created some hiring challenges recently.
Appreciate you sharing that. What should we know about Pets in the City Inc.?
Pets in the City specializes in dog training – we offer a boot camp for your pup that can last however long you want it to – we also board dogs and I do a big hike every morning with a group in West LA. We are unique in that your dog becomes our dog when they stay with us, and we are one of the only companies in LA that offers training, boarding and hiking. We have been very lucky to have never advertised – we have been all word of mouth since the inception of the company. I am most proud that I have exceeded every expectation for this business that I ever had – when my wife and I travel internationally, no one understands that this is my full-time job! It’s a unique business but I can’t imagine doing anything else professionally.
In terms of your work and the industry, what are some of the changes you are expecting to see over the next five to ten years?
The pet industry is a billion dollar business – everyone has a dog now – so I see myself getting even busier. My training sessions are now my main revenue stream, which has been an interesting shift due to the pandemic.
Contact Info:
- Email: [email protected]
- Website: www.petsinthecity.com
- Instagram: petsinthecityla
