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Yuppy Puppy: Building a Two-Location Luxury Pet Resort
Jessica Cooke’s path into pet care started at the ground level — working as a groomer, then a vet tech, and eventually a facility manager for a large pet care facility. After starting a family, she decided to venture out on her own and opened the first Yuppy Puppy location in O’Fallon, Missouri, in 2003, offering grooming services. In 2008, even amid a challenging economic climate, Jessica expanded the facility from 1,200 to 8,000 SF and added daycare and overnight boarding — transforming Yuppy Puppy from a grooming shop into a full-service pet resort.
“I wanted to build something of my own, something that reflected the standard of care I believed pets deserved,” Jessica said.
From Leased Space to Purpose-Built
When her O’Fallon lease came up for renewal in 2015, Jessica made the decision to build rather than renew — constructing a purpose-built facility that opened in 2017. The success of that location set the stage for a second, larger facility in Cottleville, which opened in 2021. That same year, Yuppy Puppy took first place in PETS+ magazine’s America’s Coolest contest, a national recognition of the standard Jessica had built across both locations. Together, the two properties reflect two decades of hands-on industry expertise and a clear, uncompromising vision for hotel-style pet hospitality, earning Yuppy Puppy its position as the leading upscale pet resort in the St. Louis market.
Jessica built a centralized leadership structure to run the two sites, with a Vice President overseeing both locations and dedicated on-site managers at each. By the time she was ready to sell, her own involvement had narrowed to light grooming work a few hours a week — proof the business could operate independently of its founder, a quality PET|VET highlights to buyers as a key value driver in any multi-location sale.
“Watching the team run both locations without needing me in the building every day was the moment I knew I’d really built something sustainable,” Jessica said.
A Rescue Woven Into the Business
Beyond the resort itself, Jessica founded YP4Ever Rescue, a boutique rescue operation focused on pets whose owners are elderly, ill, or deceased. Operating as a separate entity, the rescue has become an integral part of Yuppy Puppy’s culture and a meaningful client acquisition channel, driving nearly 200 adoptions a year. As part of the sale process, PET|VET worked to clearly define the rescue’s separation from the business for a new buyer, while helping Jessica preserve continuity for a cause she plans to keep running well beyond closing.
Transition Time – A Sale Built for Value
When Jessica decided it was time to sell, she turned to PET|VET, the only brokerage in the industry focused exclusively on pet care M&A, to run a confidential process designed to protect her staff, her clients, and the rescue community she’d built alongside the business. PET|VET’s deep buyer network and understanding of multi-location facilities positioned Yuppy Puppy to attract serious, qualified buyers looking for exactly the kind of scalable, professionally managed operation Jessica had created.
“Teija and her team understood what made this business different — the rescue, the two locations, the way I’d structured management. They knew how to present all of it in a way buyers could really see the value,” Jessica said.
PET|VET guided Jessica through valuation, buyer outreach, and negotiations, then managed the deal through due diligence and closing, keeping the transaction on track at every stage.
“They made a complicated sale feel organized from day one. I always knew what was coming next,” Jessica said.
A Successful Sale and a New Chapter
With the sale complete, Yuppy Puppy’s two locations continue under new ownership, carrying forward the standard of care Jessica spent two decades building. Jessica is turning her attention to YP4Ever Rescue and her horses, continuing the work that has always meant as much to her as the business itself.
“Selling Yuppy Puppy was emotional, but I know it’s in good hands. I’m excited to finally have the time to focus on the rescue and my horses,” Jessica said.
“If I had five more businesses to sell, I would use you gals again and again. And when the time comes to sell the buildings, I will be using you as well.”
– Jessica Cooke, Founder, Yuppy Puppy