Central Bark brings ‘whole dog care’ philosophy to Henrietta

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Phil Clark Jr.’s work life has gone to the dogs — and he couldn’t be happier.

After nearly 15 years working for Microsoft, Clark left the corporate world to launch his own business.

Partnering with his father as the franchise owners for the Rochester market, the Clarks opened Central Bark at 65 Saginaw Drive in Henrietta. Central Bark is a doggie day care business that is expanding across the country.

The younger Clark handles day-to-day operations as well as marketing. Phil Sr., founder of what is now CPL, an architecture and engineering firm headquartered in Rochester, appropriately took care of design and construction. He also does the bookkeeping.

Central Bark provides play time, grooming, training and nap time for dogs. In other words, it has nothing whatsoever in common with Microsoft’s line of products. Which is precisely why Clark made the jump.

“I was in corporate America at Microsoft for a long time,” Clark Jr. said. “I was looking to do something different with my family, do something different where I could give back to the community. I love dogs, and I know there’s a huge demand for dog services in the Rochester area.

“Working for Microsoft was great but I was sitting behind a computer all day. There’s a big, corporate feeling there, and sometimes you’re just a number in a corporation, and I really wanted to do something where I was interacting with people all the time. I really wanted to have my own business going forward and get away from the computer screen.”

He was also seeking a chance to partner with his father in business. Phil Jr. is 43. His father is 78.

“My dad and I always wanted to go into business together but for a long time it did not make sense because I was not a licensed engineer or architect, and frankly, I didn’t have the interest in his business,” Clark Jr. said.

“With a lot of the changes in technology lately, there’s a big push toward artificial intelligence,” he said. “I think there are a lot of benefits that come with AI, but it’s not something that I personally believe in as much as others. That was the thing that kind of pushed me to look into more human interaction, giving back to the community and my dad, while enjoying retirement — he’s still got some gas in the tank, per se.”

His father retired from CPL five years ago but liked the idea of remaining active in a business sense.

“I was happy to do something besides golf,” Clark Sr. said. “We wanted to do something together so we talked about franchises. I had no interest in restaurants so we did research on the pet industry and found it’s a booming industry.

They said they settled on Central Bark, in part because of company standards.

“We picked Central Bark specifically because Central Bark focuses on so many safety protocols,” said Clark Jr., whose household includes two golden doodles and a cocker spaniel. “A lot of doggie day cares in the country, they have anywhere from a 25- or 30-to-1 dog to staff ratio. Central Bark has a very low 12-to-1 ratio.”

He said the structured daily schedule also creates a fulfilling experience for every dog.

“There’s a specific play to rest schedule,” he said. “The dogs play for an hour, rest for an hour, play for two hours, rest for two hours, play for an hour, rest for an hour. When they are resting, we have a designated nap room with luxury crates, aroma therapy and classical music. And there’s also what we call a rest period enrichment that includes a Kong with a healthy treat like peanut butter, just to stimulate their crating experience.

“If they just play for eight hours a day, they’re going to be totally wiped out, so it’s better for the dog to have a play-to-rest schedule.”

Before dogs enter the program, they go through a behavior and personality assessment. The process is thorough, which is why Central Bark can only do a maximum of three assessments a day.

“We intentionally go very slow with that to make sure the dogs are the right fit for our program,” Clark Jr said.

Once the assessment is complete, dogs are aligned with those similar in age, size, behavior and temperament.

“We focus on whole dog care,” Clark Jr. said. “We really look to tailor each dog’s individual experience for their best benefit.”

Central Bark operates as Cademery Properties, LLC and is owned by Phil Jr. and his wife, Lindsay, along with his mother, Vendy, and father. The LLC name combines the names of Phil and Lindsay’s children: son Caden, who is 9, and daughter Emery, 7.

There are 13 employees, with normal hours of operation of 7 a.m. to 6:30 p.m., Monday-Friday. There is boarding by appointment only on Saturdays and Sundays, and also a free one-hour puppy training session on Saturdays for potential new clients.

Clark Jr. said much of his business acumen and drive comes from his father. But he also has incorporated principles learned during his time at Microsoft.

“I got a lot of training at Microsoft in providing incentives for people to do the right thing and have the right culture,” he said. “So, in the hiring process, I really was focusing hard on culture, and really focusing hard on people who have a passion for dogs.

“A lot of our employees are professional trainers, professional groomers, (or) they used to be vet techs. I established a positive reinforcement incentive program to ensure we’re doing the right things and also to limit turnover but to also promote the healthiest and happiest environment for our staff, which in turns trickles down to the dogs and our pet parents.”

Clark Sr. said they have long-term plans for another two locations in the metro area, as need and demand grows. The addition of veterinary services at one location is being considered.

“What I’m leaning toward is the hub and spoke model,” Clark Jr. said. “Henrietta is the central location and then we might have some smaller Central Barks around Rochester. As we open up subsequent day cares down the road, if it makes sense, I might also see if I can find a facility that can accommodate veterinary services. I think that’s something that’s potentially in the pipeline.”

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