Nikki West (Owner/PetStylist) is a professional dog groomer who focuses not only on the pet’s appearance but also on the pet’s well-being. She has been a professional groomer since 2004.
Nikki believes that it is important to consider the pet’s coat type, temperament, comfort, and lifestyle to produce the best possible haircut for each individual. Pets see their groomer more often than a vet and it is important for her to be the pet’s advocate when noticing unusual appearance in lumps, bumps, skin or ear conditions and alert the parent to seek veterinary care. Her passion is finding relief for an allergy sensitive pet or working with an anxious pup who just needed a little extra comfort to feel safe while getting pampered.
Nikki was raised in a show dog home and has been handling, training and showing dogs since a very young age. Around the age of 16 she began to obtain International Champion titles, CD titles, High in Trial, and CGC titles for both German Shepherds and Doberman. Her career outside the home began around the age of 15 where she worked at Atwood’s Pet, a boarding and training facility. She oversaw the day-to-day care for the pets at the facility including feeding, walking, bathing and cleaning. After leaving there, she had a few odd jobs but once again found herself drawn to the pet care industry and began working at a locally owned pet store, Pets and Pals. She was promoted to Assistant Manager/keyholder and oversaw the small animal care department. She left there for a wonderful opportunity at Petsmart and was trained to become a Petstylist. She worked for Petsmart for over 4 years at 3 locations, her starting location in Tacoma, Wa, one she helped start up from opening day in Redding, CA and another she worked as Salon Manager for about a year in Tukwila, WA. After Petsmart she moved around a bit but always easily found work in her field of pet care because of her strong knowledge and reliability. She eventually found herself at a salon in Cleveland in 2013 and where she cared for her dog clients for 9 long years since the start of that location. She left there to help a friend open up her salon, The Grooming Loft By Sophie, and has spent her free time taking additional pet educational classes. She has received her Canine Esthetician Certification, Hair and Skin 101 Certification, Advanced Hair and Skin Certification, Pet Salon Therapeutics Master Class Certification, AKC S.A.F.E. Certification, Difficult Dog Certification, and Pet CPR/First Aid Certification. She is looking forward to using her experience and education to help pets look beautiful, feel great and be comfortable in her new salon, Kismet K9 Pet Spa.
Sam Freeman (PetStylist) Sam graduated from the Cleveland Grooming Academy under an award-winning instructor and has been professionally grooming over a year now. Her biggest goal is to provide a safe, fear free grooming experience for every single dog so that coming to the groomers is always a good experience. Making her a perfect fit to our salon! She has already received rave reviews in her first month with us, and we are so excited to have her here.