Sprinter Van Gets Turned Into a Deluxe Mobile Pet Spa Ready To Offer Five-Star Grooming

Vans are usually converted into campers. However, with some creativity, you can transform them into all sorts of mobile venues. Take this mobile barbershop I wrote about not too long ago as an example.

The pet grooming industry has boomed in recent years. According to IBIS World, the Pet Grooming & Boarding sector in the United States has grown 6.9% per year on average between 2018 and 2023, reaching a total market size of a whopping $14.5B last year.

I had never seen a mobile dog grooming station before, but it's a business that makes sense – many groomers want to take full advantage of the recent and projected industry growth.

A mobile dog spa benefits both parties involved: the groomer and the customer. As a groomer, it helps you cut costs by eliminating the need to pay rent. Of course, rent is replaced with fuel costs. However, if you operate in an urban area, there's a high chance you'll pay less for fuel than for rent.

The increased profitability goes beyond rent – a mobile grooming salon requires significantly less start-up costs than brick-and-mortar stores. Moreover, the electrical and water bills will be a lot lower. Another notable advantage of the flexibility you have in your work schedule

From a customer's perspective, it's crystal clear it's easier to have the grooming salon come to your house rather than bring your pet to a brick-and-mortar one. No more need to walk over there or, even worse, fill your car with fur.

It's also easier for the dog to go through the grooming experience when it's close to home. What's more, there's no waiting room and little to no risk of your four-legged friend catching an illness from another dog, as the entire area is cleaned and sanitized after each dog.

The mobile dog grooming van I'm discussing today is based on a 2022 Mercedes-Benz Sprinter 2500. It was created by Wilderness Vans, a Lethbridge, Canada-based company specializing in camper conversions, although it occasionally makes other types of custom projects like this one.

On the exterior, this rig is finished in white paint with black lower trim. Wilderness Vans installed two Broad Arrow curved windows, one on the sliding door and the other on the van's passenger side. Next to the latter, you'll notice a ladder. Furthermore, you'll discover a roof rack holding solar panels on top of the van.

Slide the main door open, and a spacious, well-equipped interior will greet you. Regarding aesthetics, the customer opted for graphite fabric walls, custom vinyl sheet flooring, and white cabinetry. What's more, the driver's cabin is separated from the rest of the interior by a metal wall with a sliding door.

Dead ahead of the entrance, you'll find the groomer's workstation with an electric lift that allows you to adjust it based on the dog's height. On the opposite side, by the door, Wilderness Vans fitted a swivel table, a flip-up table, and a bench housing a Laveo dry-flush toilet, as well as a sizeable overhead cabinet.

Next, on the passenger side of the interior, you'll notice a massive wash station that can fit even the largest of dogs. It consists of stainless steel walls and floor, a shower with a long hose connected to a 53-gallon (200-liter) freshwater tank underneath.

After you're done washing, you can use a dryer hidden in a bench on the opposite side. Naturally, when drying a dog, lots of fur will fly everywhere. For an easier clean-up, Wilderness Vans installed a vacuum system in a cabinet at the rear of the interior. Underneath it, you'll discover this van's electrical system, an EcoFlow 10 kWh Independence power kit.

The builders made sure to install enough storage spaces for the groomer to hold all the shampoos and other dog products needed for grooming. You'll find two large overhead cabinets above the bench housing the dryer. One of them has the rig's control panel, which comprises a battery monitor/controller and two gauges for the fresh and greywater tanks.

Walk past the wash area, and you'll find yourself between four enormous cabinets. The two on the driver's side hold the vacuum and electrical systems, while the others provide additional storage space and house a 26-gallon (98-liter) greywater tank and an 11-gallon (41-liter) Seaward Marine water heater.

Wilderness Vans ensured this rig was four-season ready by fitting a Dometic RTX 2000 A/C, a Webasto Evo 40 diesel heater, and a Maxxair Deluxe fan.

All in all, this mobile pet spa is ready to handle all your dog's grooming needs. It's off-grid-capable enough to handle multiple visits, provides both heating and cooling, and its interior even looks good, although that's not quite a necessity considering its purpose.