If you’re a local in and around Adelaide’s east looking for somewhere to get your furry friend groomed or washed, there’s a new place you’ll want to check out. Loby & Sam popped up last spring, stepping outside the box compared to your usual pet grooming business.
Loby & Sam were created with the clear goal of offering calm, unhurried grooming in a space where pets are treated like family. Unlike many high-volume salons, this boutique operation works on a one-appointment, one-pet basis (or pets from the same household), making for a safe, low-stress environment for animals who may feel anxious around others. Service times are intentionally longer, allowing for patient, gentle handling and a focus on each animal’s individual needs rather than rushing through multiple bookings a day.
The idea for the business began with Rick’s pet dog, Loby. After years of taking Loby to different groomers, Rick began to notice how fast-paced some appointments felt, with pets sometimes handled hurriedly to fit more clients into the day. Wanting a better experience for his own dog, he travelled to China to formally study grooming and pet washing, spending a year training and practising with different breeds and sizes of dogs and cats. After graduating, he returned with a vision to create something different and teamed up with business partner Jennifer and her cat Sam to start the journey.
“Rick learned a lot about different breeds of dogs and cats and their personalities while training in China,” shared Jen. “That gave him a different approach to the pets when they come in for a wash or grooming, rather than using the same technique for all pets.”
“After Rick arrived home from China, we talked about it casually at first, after work, over dinner, after grooming sessions with Loby and Sam. It was never a dramatic ‘let’s start a business’ moment. It was more of a steady realisation that something meaningful was taking shape. ‘If we’re going to do this, let’s do it properly’.”
“The concept behind the name ‘Loby & Sam’ is to show that we are treating every single pet who comes to our shop like Loby and Sam,” said Jen. “Every pet will be treated like our own, and receive the most care and love possible while they are with us for washing and grooming.”
With that philosophy, Rick and Jen focus on taking a gentle approach. Jen says a classic example of this is that most groomers use a blow dryer to dry the pets after washing. “At Loby & Sam, we have introduced a caged dry box machine, which is much less noisy than the traditional blow-dry. With the temperature normally set at 37 degrees, the animals feel much more relaxed in a warm, low-stress environment. By taking a bit longer with each appointment, it means we don’t rush any steps of the washing and grooming part, making sure we get it right before we send pets back to their owners.”
They have also chosen to focus on cat grooming. “Cats can be very sassy at times, and it’s not always easy to control them when cleaning and grooming,” said Jen. At Loby & Sam, the team takes it slow to make sure the cats don’t get overwhelmed with the whole process. Rick and Jen have big plans for the future. They want to be known for the care, effort and love they put into their grooming, and become the go-to destination for trusted service.
Book your dog or cat to be groomed by messaging Loby & Sam on Instagram! @loby.sam25
Loby & Sam
Where: 43 Payneham Rd, College Park, Adelaide, South Australia 5069
Contact: Jennifer – 0452 658 046
Instagram: @loby.sam25
