Juju Grooms

We spoke with Owner and Lead Groomer, Juju Castelo (she/her), and Branding and Social Media Coordinator, Britney Bentick (she/her) of Juju Grooms, Shop Juju and Kitty Korner.

What can you tell me about your grooming business?

Juju Grooms started off in our two-bedroom apartment. At the time, the business was named TwoTails. In 2020, we decided we wanted to open a brick-and-mortar store and opened that December. We have now been in that location for five years!

We have built a reputation based on trust, transparency, and transforming your pets’ experience with the process of being groomed. Juju Grooms was founded on the principles of positive reinforcement, low-impact grooming. We make it a point to hire like-minded individuals. Everyone has a different way of grooming, but our approach and business ethos is non-negotiable. Our team’s focus is on the pets’ best interests and overall experience.

After three years of being in business, we opened our second location in 2023, Shop Juju. And then in 2024, we opened Kitty Korner, Toronto’s first exclusive cat grooming salon. We are so proud of the work that we have done rehabilitating dogs and cats that others have labeled as “difficult” the “ungroomable”.

Because of our efforts, Juju Grooms is an award-winning pet grooming salon that has been recognized for its efforts in the Toronto Star. Shop Juju has also been honored to have been featured in British Vogue, Glamour and British GQ.

What would you say is your unique selling point?

There are certain traits, as a groomer, that cannot be taught. I believe our groomers possess those traits. Each one of our groomers has an unbelievable level of patience and calming energy. Because of those traits, our groomers are able to handle what others would call difficult, aggressive, and challenging pets, with a level of care that is hard to find.

This is what I think makes our businesses so unique. We take on the dogs and cats that have been turned away from other salons, the ones that are seen as impossible to groom.

We rehabilitate a lot of our clients and get them to a point where they are comfortable, happy or at the very least no longer stressed by the grooming process. We approach grooming knowing that not every groom can be aesthetically pleasing. Sometimes, the most important thing is that your pets are comfortable, and that doesn’t always look the prettiest.

What can you tell me about how you trained to be a dog groomer?

Juju started off her career studying to be a nurse. When she was studying, she took a job as a dog bather at a salon. As she worked there, she fell in love with her job and fell deeper in love with dogs.

Grooming became her passion, so she asked to be trained as a groomer. A senior groomer took her on, and she began the process. Over time, she developed an interest in cat grooming as well. She found a program that taught her how to be a Master Certified Feline groomer in the states, hopped on a plane and learned from the best.

Juju has never been one to sit still or to stop her education. As time has passed, she has continued to further her grooming education, going to seminars, flying to grooming conventions in the States, and flying to Korea with her groomers to take an Asian Style grooming course.

Do you have any “hidden gems” you’d like to share with our readers?

Never underestimate the importance of branding, style and what your space looks and feels like. A lot of what helps us stand out as a business before people get to know what we do is what we look like.

Each of our stores has a specific feel, Juju Grooms is relaxed, calming, modern, and clean. Calming greens and natural wood tones help evoke the feeling of trust and calm. Shop Juju is fun, modern, punchy; pink, yellow, green, blue, purple and light wood tones make for an exciting shopping experience. Kitty Korner is bright, happy and calming; creams and yellows make for a warm and inviting space.

What advice would you give to other dog groomers who are just starting out in the industry?

The best advice I could give would be to find a good salon that allows you to grow and has an interest in educating its groomers. I would also recommend that YOU never lose your interest in learning more. No one can ever know everything, so keep learning and keep growing throughout your career. This industry is always evolving, and there is always something new to learn.

Are there any general thoughts you’d like to share?

I believe groomers and business owners should be working together as a whole to have the same goals, which is providing safe, stress-free environments for our clients. Grooming is a stressful process, no matter how you look at it. I believe it’s our responsibility to make the experience as stress-free as possible.

Transparency and communication are very important to a client, and if we are able to effectively communicate with them, it allows for both them and their pets to feel more at ease.

Animals can sense our emotions, and if their owners are calmer, they will be too.