Back in Town: Our 5th Dogtopia Location… this time in Fairfield County | From custom commercial building to restorative residential renovations, M&M consistently delivers on-time, on-budget projects with skill -- and has since 2003

M&M Constructions is back in the 203, this time building a 5th location for our friends at Dogtopia! As dog lovers ourselves, we lack the proper words to describe how excited the M&M team is to have one of these franchises in town. With over 5,000 square feet of space, this high-volume Norwalk dog care center will be a fundamental fixture in Fairfield County’s pet parent community.

Norwalk is a highly-accessible central Fairfield County town, diverse and densely adorned with infrastructure. Many families in surrounding towns and cities either pass through Norwalk in their commute, or gravitate towards it because of its myriad offerings. Franchisees and small business owners recognize the earning potential of this locality, which has left the small city serving as a “one-stop-shop” for errand running. As it stands, however, Norwalk and its neighboring zip codes lack in the doggy daycare front.

An area boasting an above-average per capita dog-owning population, Fairfield county has historically relied on expensive and unreliable pet care options. When residents plan vacations, business trips, or other travel ventures, they are faced with the stressful task of arranging care for their dogs.

While vet clinics typically offer boarding, doting pet parents often avoid utilizing the high-stress clinical environment for the emotional well-being of their dogs. Availability is also limited in these settings. Option two may be hiring a local high schooler looking to make a buck, but the reliability of that age group is highly subjective. Wag and Rover dog walking apps, created in the image of childcare apps like Care.com, are seamless in theory, but are also pretty hit-or-miss in practice. Hiring a stranger to enter your home AND provide adequate care to your loved one is something that parents of human- and animal-children can attest to being wary of.

Dogtopia’s rapid expansion speaks not only to the efficacy of their business plan, but also to the satisfaction of their clients. Thoroughly vetted, specialized staff and high procedural standards solve the nightmarish logistical problems faced in other pet care options, and costs are relatively very low. Dogtopia’s quality control transcends staffing, and is apparent in every operational element. Even spa services are procedurally consistent, without sacrificing the need to tailor them to the unique needs of each furry guest. Dog owners can also directly monitor every element of care via webcam. Doing so is encouraged (and therefore much less controversial than nanny-cam spying on a 16-year-old petsitter while she simultaneously dumps an unmeasured quantity of Purina into your dog’s bowl, chats with her boyfriend on FaceTime and kicks a pile of accidentally-spilled kibble under your stove). Where our respect for the company and its franchisees lies the most, though, is in its buildings’ standardized elements.

Satisfied Dogtopia customers are our absolute top priority in this project, as they residually keep our franchisee client satisfied and inclined to bring us along in further expansions. From soundproofing and dog-spa fixtures, all the way down to the flooring materials, structural components are an easily-overlooked but pivotal factor in achieving that satisfaction. Plethoric potential problems and pitfalls for a business can entirely offset by a well-built establishment. For example, by selecting materials that are quick and easy-to-clean, more time and energy can be devoted to the pets. The opportunity cost of haphazardly, shoddily designing and building a cheap workspace is, in this case, the well-being of peoples’ beloved pets. Attention to detail is one of, if not THE, most important facet to our craft as builders. With this being our 5th job site for the franchise, procedures on our end are developing their own streamlined processes.

Now seasoned Dogtopia franchise builders, our team devoted just one month of focused skeletal work on the site to successfully pass rough inspections. Sheetrock installation was a breeze, and now the pet hotel and spa is beginning to get that familiar Dogtopia look. Our fast, attentive work on this new neighborhood staple will soon pay off for all us, and we look forward to filling you guys in every step of the way!

Building a franchise location, commercial construction in Connecticut