A pet grooming business in Gurnee is priced on adjusted seller’s discretionary earnings after a buyer compares this book to Waukegan — not on a statewide rumor multiple. Illinois CBS-1 (10 business days). No Chicago 45-day city notice unless the business also operates in Chicago. The statewide pet grooming businesses playbook is on the industry hub; this page is the Gurnee file. Confidential sale. No upfront listing fee.
Confidential • No upfront fees • Illinois statewide
Gurnee market
Selling a pet grooming business in Gurnee
A pet grooming business in Gurnee is priced on adjusted seller’s discretionary earnings after a buyer compares this book to Waukegan — not on a statewide rumor multiple. Illinois CBS-1 (10 business days). No Chicago 45-day city notice unless the business also operates in Chicago. The statewide pet grooming businesses playbook is on the industry hub; this page is the Gurnee file.
Gurnee is the Lake County tourism interchange: Gurnee Mills, Six Flags Great America, and I-94 outlets — visitor traffic on top of a residential village.
Outlet and theme-park seasonality belongs in the recast. Franchise and mall landlords control more leases here than in Libertyville’s downtown. Great Lakes Naval Station is nearby payroll, not this village’s identity. A household HVAC book and a Mills-adjacent restaurant are two sales.
Gurnee has about 31,295 residents in Lake County, inside the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin area. Nearby markets buyers already compare this book to include Waukegan, Libertyville, Round Lake. That comparison changes who shows up: a buyer who will drive from Waukegan is not the same buyer who will fly in from a coastal platform.
Planning facts
Typical multiple
2x–3x SDE
Typical timeline
4–9 months
SBA eligible
Often — confirm
County
Lake County
Population
31,295
Metro
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin
Nearby comps
Waukegan, Libertyville, Round Lake
Closing clock
Illinois CBS-1 (10 business days). No Chicago 45-day city notice unless the business also operates in Chicago
DuPage, Lake, Kane, Will, McHenry, Kendall, and neighboring collar shops sell on household density and the I-88, I-90, I-94, and I-55 corridors.
There is no Chicago 45-day city notice unless the business also operates in Chicago. Buyers still compare this suburb to the next one on the same highway.
Gurnee demand for pet grooming businesses is the customer list and the license path — not the Census population figure. About 31,295 residents is context for who already lives in the trade area. It is not a sale price.
Pet Grooming Business in Gurnee
What a Gurnee buyer will underwrite on this pet grooming business
Buyers comparing a pet grooming business in Gurnee to shops in Waukegan, Libertyville, Round Lake will underwrite the customer list, the lease, and who holds the license — not a shared Lake County multiple.
Pet Grooming Businesses statewide typically plan around 2x–3x SDE and a 4–9 months process when books and the lease are ready. That is a planning range, not a price for this Gurnee shop. Buyers here usually argue repeat customer base, appointment volume, staff retention, lease terms.
Closing clock for this Gurnee file: Illinois CBS-1 (10 business days). No Chicago 45-day city notice unless the business also operates in Chicago. License path: Illinois does not license groomers statewide. The industry hub teaches the statewide rule. This URL is the Gurnee application of it.
In a suburb like Gurnee, groomers, pet lovers, small investors are the names that usually appear on the NDA list. A buyer who will drive from Waukegan is not the same buyer who will fly in from a coastal platform.
Buyer pool
Who buys a pet grooming business in Gurnee
Split buyer pool: North Shore and Libertyville businesses attract SBA and strategics who want household income; Waukegan and industrial I-94 businesses attract operator and logistics buyers. Great Lakes Naval Station and tourism along the lake change seasonality for some retail and hospitality books.
Illustration: a three-table salon in Arlington Heights with two employed groomers, a seller who still takes the difficult doodles, and a full Saturday book. Not a closed sale and not a kennel.
A pet grooming business whose customers already sit in Waukegan, Libertyville, Round Lake is a larger business than one that stops at the Gurnee city limit. Tell the truth about the route. Buyers will map it.
SDE recast
How a buyer will read the books on this Gurnee pet grooming business
Grooming recasts on appointment capacity and groomer production, not a holiday-bow week. Add back owner-groomer hours, then isolate mobile-van days if the van is leaving and any retail that is really distributor samples. If the seller still does every doodle, subtract a groomer. A 2x–3x SDE band assumes the book will sit for a new pair of hands.
Illustration only — not a quote for any Gurnee shop. A pet grooming business whose tax return shows $90,000 of net profit is not worth $90,000 × a rumor multiple.
Add back the owner’s $51,000 W-2 and payroll tax, $11,500 of discretionary benefits, $3,000 of accepted one-time cost, and $8,500 of personal expenses that a buyer will not run. Then subtract $24,000 of replacement labor if the owner still diagnoses, sells, or closes the books.
Adjusted seller’s discretionary earnings are $140,000. At the planning range 2.0x–3.0x, enterprise value is $280,000 to $420,000. Mid-range 2.50x is $350,000 before debt, working capital, holdback, and tax. A Gurnee buyer will argue the multiple after they ride with the staff and read the lease.
At 2.50 times $140,000 of seller’s discretionary earnings, enterprise value is $350,000 before debt, working capital, holdback, and tax. That is the planning conversation. It is not a listing-site guess.
SDE line items
Reported net profit (tax return, not the marketing P&L)
+ Interest expense
+ Income taxes (not payroll, sales, or property tax)
+ Depreciation and amortization
+ Owner W-2, bonuses, and payroll taxes on the owner
+ Discretionary owner benefits that a buyer will not keep (auto, personal travel, family on payroll with no role)
+ Accepted one-time or non-recurring expenses
− Market-rate replacement labor for owner work that will not transfer
= Seller’s Discretionary Earnings (SDE)
Illustration recast for a Gurnee pet grooming business — not a quote
Net profit
$90,000
Owner W-2
$51,000
Benefits
$11,500
One-time
$3,000
Personal
$8,500
Replacement labor (subtract)
−$24,000
Recast SDE
$140,000
Planning EV at 2.50x
$350,000
Recast Seller’s Discretionary Earnings, then apply a planning multiple for pet grooming businesses.
Replacement labor is subtracted. This is a planning tool, not an appraisal.
Recast SDE—
Planning enterprise value—
Before debt, working-capital peg, holdback, and tax. Educational only.
Enter your annual Seller's Discretionary Earnings (SDE) — your net profit plus owner's salary and any personal expenses run through the business — to estimate a range.
$
1x3.0x8x
Estimated Value Range—to—
This is an estimate for planning purposes only. Actual value depends on lease terms, asset quality, customer concentration, and current market conditions. Request a professional valuation for a precise number.
Lake County closings use state CBS-1 plus municipal licenses (Waukegan, Gurnee, Libertyville, and North Shore villages each differ). No Chicago 45-day notice unless you also have a Chicago location. Lake County health and contractor registrations are common diligence items for food and trades.
Illinois does not license groomers statewide. Municipal business licenses and county animal-related rules apply. Mobile vans add vehicle and municipal vending or home-occupation issues. Bite-and-injury insurance is an underwriting item. No professional license transfers because the state does not issue one — the customers transfer only if they like the next groomer.
Labor and lease
What has to keep working on Monday after close in Gurnee
For a pet grooming business in Gurnee, the first labor question is: Employed groomers who keep their own books inside the salon.
I-94 is the spine. Route density is real between Buffalo Grove and Gurnee and thinner toward the Wisconsin line. Leases in outlet and tourism corridors can be franchise- or landlord-controlled. Winter lake-effect operations matter for home services.
Lake mixes Fortune-campus remnants, naval payroll, and bedroom suburbs. Do not price a Waukegan industrial book like a Libertyville professional practice.
Diligence
What a serious pet grooming business buyer will open
Levers that move the multiple in this vertical: Employed groomers who keep their own books inside the salon; A dense appointment calendar, not holiday spikes; Equipment and tub plumbing that work; Clean insurance and bite file; A lease that allows pet use and drying noise.
Have these ready before anyone hears the name of the Gurnee business: Appointment book density and no-show rate; Groomers who stay versus the seller’s personal doodle list; Tubs, tables, dryers, and any mobile-van title and condition; Bite, scratch, and insurance-claim history; Retail and add-on attach versus grooming labor; Lease, drains, and neighbor-odor complaints.
Buyer tool
SBA payment sketch for a Gurnee pet grooming business buyer
Most Illinois owner-operator acquisitions use SBA 7(a). This is a payment sketch, not an approval.
SBA 7(a) loans are the most common financing for business acquisitions. Estimate your monthly payment and required down payment based on the purchase price.
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%
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yrs
Down Payment Required—
Loan Amount—
Est. Monthly Payment—
This calculator provides estimates for planning purposes only. Actual SBA loan terms depend on your credit profile, the specific lender, and current market conditions. Contact us to connect with SBA-approved lenders in Illinois.
Sale steps
How to prepare a Gurnee pet grooming business for sale
Recast this Gurnee pet grooming business. Start with the tax return. Add owner pay. Subtract replacement labor if the seller still does the work a Gurnee buyer must hire. Do not treat a spike year as the new normal.
Name who can operate on Monday. List every credential that lets this pet grooming business pull a permit or see a patient in Gurnee, and whether that person stays. Personal licenses do not transfer with the assets.
Tell the truth about the Gurnee trade area. Map customers against neighboring towns. Buyers will. A book that already covers those towns is larger than a book that stops at the Gurnee limit.
Open the lease and the labor file. Remaining term and assignment in Lake County. Whether the crew can run without the seller living eight minutes away.
Calendar the notices that apply here. Illinois CBS-1 (10 business days). No Chicago 45-day city notice unless the business also operates in Chicago. Start them at letter of intent, not the week of funding.
Read the statewide playbook, then talk. The Illinois pet grooming businesses hub is the statute and recast teaching. This page is the Gurnee file. Confidential consult — no upfront listing fee.
Answers for owners and buyers in Lake County, including local closing steps.
Buyers start with seller’s discretionary earnings, then apply a planning range around 2x–3.5x SDE. That is a statewide starting point, not an appraisal. The lease, licenses, and how much of the book depends on the owner move the number more than a rumor multiple.
Most prepared Main Street sales take about six to twelve months. Clean books and an assignable lease help. License transfers and landlord consent are what add weeks.
Illinois does not license groomers statewide the way it licenses veterinarians. Municipal business licenses and, if you board, local animal-facility rules apply. Client lists transfer only with an NDA process.
Yes. If the owner still grooms the high-ticket dogs, subtract replacement labor. A shop that runs on two employed groomers sells differently.
Yes. Buyers sign a non-disclosure agreement before they see the name. Your staff should not learn the sale from a listing photo. Key people may hear near a signed letter of intent.
Most Gurnee asset sales file Illinois Form CBS-1 at least 10 business days before closing. Lake County does not use Chicago’s 45-day city notice unless the business also operates there. Municipal licenses and the lease still need their own calendar.
Buyers in Gurnee are often SBA owner-operators and neighboring operators along the same corridor. Larger recurring books can draw a platform. They will compare this suburb to the next town in Lake County.
No. The planning multiple for pet grooming businesses is a statewide starting point, not a Gurnee appraisal. Buyers in Lake County still adjust seller’s discretionary earnings, then argue the lease, licenses, labor, and owner dependency.
Service Area
Pet Grooming Business Brokerage Near Gurnee
We serve pet grooming businesses owners and buyers across Lake County and the surrounding region.