Popular dog grooming business gets new premises in heart of picturesque West Sussex village

The team behind Groom Shed have announced that they have bought 50 High Street in the village.

Louise Brown, who owns the business with Sophie Sellwood, said it will change its name too and said this will be revealed at a later date.

“We hope to be open by October 30,” Louise told the Middy.

She said that her dog salon, which she currently runs at her garden in Kemps, was founded during the Covid pandemic and has grown in popularity.

She said: “We’ve just run out of space really, which is why we've looked to expand.”

She continued: “What makes us a bit different is we are ‘kind groomers’, so we do what is right for the dog. We’re all dog behaviourists so we’re all trained to read the dog and our goal and our ethos is to never push a dog beyond its limits and to always make sure that they’re happy.”

Louise said Sophie is going to run a takeaway coffee, tea and hot chocolate offering at the new premises too using Sussex products. She said: “Dog walkers can come in and get a nice cup of coffee or tea while they carry on their dog walk.”

There will be products for dogs and dog walkers too, as well as fun dog-themed items for children.

Louise has been a dog groomer for around 20 years and comes from a hairdressing background. She said: “I’ve always loved dogs. I was brought up on golden retrievers and springer spaniels.”

Initially she wanted to become a vet but she started work as a Saturday girl at a ladies hairdressing salon and loved the experience. She then learned how to be a hairdresser and, since her family had dogs, it fell to her to cut the dogs’ hair.

Louise, who is originally from Kingston, moved to Horsham with her husband (from Liverpool) a few years ago before relocating to Hurstpierpoint in 2017. She said the area is great for dog walking and called the community ‘fantastic’ and ‘very welcoming’. She said: “I really love the high street and I’m a strong believer that if we don’t use the high street we’ll lose it.”