Woof Gang enters Arkansas, Oklahoma, and Utah
Bottom line
Woof Gang Bakery & Grooming has entered three new states, opening its first stores in Rogers, Arkansas; Edmond, Oklahoma; and Millcreek, Utah. The June 16 announcement pushes the franchise’s footprint to 36 states and Canada, extending a growth streak that already included the opening of its 300th location in January. Company materials describe Woof Gang as the largest pet grooming-focused franchise in the U.S., with more than 450 locations open or in development, and say the latest openings are part of a push into interior markets beyond its stronger coastal and Sun Belt base. (citybiz.co)
Why it matters: For veterinary professionals, the expansion is another sign that grooming, retail, and wellness-adjacent pet services continue to professionalize and scale. As more franchise operators enter midsize markets, clinics may see new opportunities for referral relationships, cross-promotion around skin and coat care, and shared client education, especially for pets with chronic dermatologic, behavioral, or mobility needs that affect grooming frequency and safety. It also signals continued competition for trained support staff in pet services, since grooming remains labor-intensive and locally executed even inside a national brand system. (citybiz.co)
What to watch: Watch whether Woof Gang keeps accelerating into underserved interior markets as it works toward its stated North American growth plans through 2027 and beyond. (petfoodindustry.com)
Woof Gang Bakery & Grooming is expanding its franchise map again, this time with first-ever openings in Arkansas, Oklahoma, and Utah. The new stores in Rogers, Edmond, and Millcreek were announced June 16 and bring the company to 36 states plus Canada, adding to what the company has described as one of the most active growth periods in its history. (citybiz.co)
The move builds on a fast start to 2026. In January, Woof Gang announced the opening of its 300th location in The Villages area of Florida, framing that milestone as proof of franchisee demand and repeat multi-unit growth within the system. Around the same time, trade coverage reported that the company reached $150 million in systemwide sales in 2025, up 25% year over year, and said it was targeting roughly 450 North American stores by 2027. (globenewswire.com)
The latest expansion is notable not just for store count, but for geography. Woof Gang has said it focused recent growth in the Midwest, Northeast, and West Coast, and the new openings suggest it’s also leaning harder into interior U.S. markets where franchise pet services may still have more whitespace. In its June announcement, the company tied the move to demand for premium grooming and specialty retail, while also pointing to a broader merchandising push that now includes more than 450 curated products, alongside newer launches such as hypoallergenic pet wipes and an expanded toy assortment. (citybiz.co)
CEO Ricardo Azevedo has been explicit that the brand sees grooming as the engine behind that growth. In a March interview, he said Woof Gang delivers more than 1 million grooms annually and operates in a grooming market that remains highly fragmented, with more than 22,000 independent salons. He also described a model built around local franchise operators, standardized training, and what the company calls the “Woof Gang Way,” with an emphasis on service consistency and safety protocols. (asbn.com)
Industry recognition has helped support that expansion narrative. Woof Gang said it ranked No. 284 on Entrepreneur’s 2026 Franchise 500, improving from No. 428 previously, and the company has continued to position itself as a premium, grooming-led retail concept rather than a conventional pet supply chain. That distinction matters because it puts recurring service revenue, not just product sales, at the center of the model. (globenewswire.com)
Why it matters: For veterinary teams, this kind of franchise growth is worth tracking because groomers often become an early touchpoint for skin disease, ear issues, mobility limitations, obesity, nail and coat neglect, and behavior changes that may warrant veterinary follow-up. A growing national chain can create more structured local partners for clinics that want reliable referral pathways, especially for routine coat maintenance or post-treatment grooming needs. At the same time, more branded grooming capacity in local markets could intensify hiring pressure for animal-care workers and raise expectations from pet parents around convenience, retail add-ons, and bundled wellness-adjacent services. That last point is an inference based on Woof Gang’s service-plus-retail model and its ongoing product expansion. (citybiz.co)
There’s also a broader market signal here. Even as discretionary consumer spending has been uneven, Woof Gang is still framing pet services as resilient, and its recent performance suggests investors and franchisees continue to buy that thesis. For independent groomers and veterinary practices with grooming offerings, the company’s move into Arkansas, Oklahoma, and Utah may be less about those three stores alone, and more about how quickly organized pet-service brands are moving into secondary and tertiary markets. (citybiz.co)
What to watch: The next marker will be whether Woof Gang converts this three-state entry into denser regional clusters, and whether it stays on pace with its stated goal of about 450 North American stores by 2027, while maintaining the training and service consistency it says underpin the model. (petfoodindustry.com)