We head to Snuffle bar in south London to see what it’s like to run one.
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00:00Dog cafes are becoming a growing trend here in London with well over 25 of them popping up across the capital.
00:08But what is it actually like owning one and what impact do they have on our local communities and our city?
00:15So it was a lockdown project when I decided to change a little bit and move from hospitality to another sort of hospitality that was including dogs.
00:28I've done a lot of courses during the lockdown, like behaviour, nutrition for dogs.
00:34And then I started like just a hobby, let's say, to build up this project.
00:41And then I showed someone and they were like, well, this is sounds cool.
00:46Do you want to do the business plan?
00:48So I've done the business plan.
00:50And in the meantime, I just decided to do it.
00:52It was lockdown, so it was always like I was walking to the dog to the park and there was nothing to do.
00:59And I was checking the location. I was like, oh, this is so beautiful next to the park.
01:04It was closed for a long time.
01:07And so I just hope that was becoming available as soon as possible.
01:12And it did, actually, exactly when I was looking for the location.
01:18The idea of animal cafes began in Taiwan in 1998 and spread quickly to Japan and other parts of the world.
01:26Now, Londoners are embracing the unique concept, enjoying a cup of coffee while interacting with dogs in a cosy and relaxed environment.
01:35And you get to spend every day with dogs now, basically. Is that just like?
01:40Yeah, it's my life.
01:42Yeah, sometimes it's not easy because the dogs are off the lead all the time.
01:48So you have to make sure that they don't pee, they don't poop.
01:51It's like they are like babies, kids, toddlers around.
01:56And so let's say this sometimes can be very hectic.
02:00It's not always smooth and but it's a good fun.
02:04And dogs have like just the best energy and they're adorable and they're always make you like smile even when it's very hard.
02:12And you have to go through the day and you're very tired like me today.
02:17And then also because it's a dog cafe, but it's also a wine bar.
02:21Yeah. In the evening we do wine bar.
02:24We organize events like up to well, we don't have a big space, so we can do like up to 30, 35 people.
02:33And with live music, we've got the garden.
02:37So, yeah, the Tuesday and Wednesday, we close at five like a normal cafe.
02:43And then Thursday to Saturday, we close at nine.
02:47And summertime, obviously, we're going to use more the garden.
02:50The finally will be sunny at least a few days.