Today we’d like to introduce you to Adrienne Agresti.
Hi Adrienne, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
My Story:
I’m not really sure where to begin, so I guess I’ll start at the beginning—when I acquired my business in 1997.
I had just gotten married and was working as a veterinary assistant at Holmdel Veterinary Clinic. One day, a call came through from someone looking to sell a property in the area. It was a boarding kennel. The veterinarian wasn’t interested in purchasing it, but he asked me if I was.
Of course, I jumped at the opportunity.
I had always been an entrepreneur and had owned and worked in several different businesses before becoming a veterinary assistant. I had previously owned a hot dog cart, worked as a massage therapist, and helped my father with his business, Rent-A-Kid. I always preferred working for myself, so when this opportunity came along, I was ecstatic.
My sister and I went to look at the property in Middletown, and we immediately saw the opportunity. More importantly, we saw a place where we could build something around our shared love of animals.
I purchased the property with my sister as my partner, and eventually, we named the business Bow-Wow Bed & Bath.
We worked together for several years. Then, in 2000, she had a set of twins, and I had my first baby. She was ready to move on and sell her share of the business, but I felt like I was just getting started.
That’s when my husband, Mark Agresti, stepped in.
After September 11, 2001, Mark left his position as a day trader and decided to temporarily help me at the kennel while I looked for another business partner. But “temporarily” didn’t last very long. He quickly fell in love with the animals, the dogs, the customers, and the quality of life that came with owning your own business. He certainly didn’t miss the commute to New York!
And so, we built a life and a business together.
We raised four girls while running the kennel. Over the years, there were times when Mark was more involved and times when I was more involved. Of course, we also had wonderful employees who helped us with the day-to-day operation of the business.
Little by little, we built a small business that became part of the local community. We developed wonderful relationships with our customers and with local veterinary practices, and those relationships became some of our greatest sources of referrals. That’s how we kept Bow-Wow steady, growing, and connected to the community.
Mark was a talker. He could turn checkout into a 20-minute conversation, catching up with customers and asking about their families and their dogs. I’m a little less of a talker!
As our girls got older and became involved in travel soccer, we spent a lot of time traveling for their games and tournaments. I took on more of the travel role with the kids, while Mark stayed behind to make sure everything was running smoothly at the kennel.
Then our lives changed dramatically.
In 2021, Mark was diagnosed with Stage 4 lung cancer. By the time he was diagnosed, it had already spread to his brain. He could no longer work and had tumors in his brain that required constant chemotherapy and radiation. The treatments took an enormous toll on his body and his mind.
I continued running the business while our kids were in school, and I relied heavily on Teresa, one of our kennel attendants, who has been by my side for many years. She became an incredibly important part of keeping Bow-Wow going during some of the most difficult years of my life.
I lost my husband, Mark, in 2025.
But Bow-Wow continued.
With the help of my oldest daughter, Madeline, we continue to run Bow-Wow Bed & Bath and carry on what Mark and I built together.
Madeline has even branched out and created Bow-Wow Fit Club, a division of Bow-Wow Bed & Bath. She has doggy treadmills in a mobile van and brings the gym right to people’s homes. She travels to clients and exercises their dogs, giving them a fun and healthy way to stay active.
Today, we continue to push forward every day. We do it in memory of Mark, but also in honor of the dream my sister and I had when we first started this business in 1997.
Bow-Wow has become so much more than a business to me. It is a part of my family, my life, and my community.
I’m proud that we can provide a safe, loving place for dogs to stay while their owners travel, and a place where they can come for a bath, a groom, daycare, boarding, or simply some extra love and attention.
We also work with several local rescue groups, which is one of the ways I try to give back and help dogs in need.
After almost 30 years, I’m still here, still learning, still growing, and still doing what I love.
And every day, I’m grateful that a simple phone call in 1997 led me to a business that became a family, a community, and a life I could never have imagined.
🐶❤️
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Has it been a smooth road? Is there ever really a smooth road?
I don’t think there is. And honestly, if there weren’t struggles along the way, how would we grow?
Of course, there have been plenty of challenges over the years. The economy goes up and down, and because travel is such a big part of our boarding business, anything that affects travel affects us, too. After September 11, 2001, for example, travel came to a standstill, and we definitely felt the impact.
But every time we faced a challenge, we found new ways to reinvent ourselves, make ends meet, and market the business. We learned to adapt rather than give up.
COVID was another enormous challenge. Like so many businesses, we were mandated to shut down. Because we had live animals in our care, however, we were permitted to remain open to care for the dogs who were already boarding with us. We had to completely rethink the way we conducted business. We found ways to safely take dogs in for grooming with little to no person-to-person contact and continued to serve our customers while keeping everyone as safe as possible.
There have also been the personal struggles that come with trying to balance a business and a family—having children, struggling with pregnancies, having newborns, and trying to be there for your family while also keeping a business running.
But I think one of the biggest challenges for any business owner is finding good-quality employees and, more importantly, keeping them.
When you find good people, you have to value them and do everything you can to keep them. Your employees are the face of your business. They are the people your customers interact with every day, and they play such an important role in creating the experience that keeps customers coming back.
So, no, it certainly hasn’t always been a smooth road. But I’ve learned that the struggles are part of the journey. They force you to be creative, to adapt, and to find new ways to move forward.
After nearly 30 years in business, I think that ability to keep adapting—and to keep getting back up when things knock you down—is one of the biggest reasons we’re still here today.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
Bow-Wow Bed & Bath is a full-service dog care business located in Middletown, New Jersey. We provide boarding, grooming, daycare, training, and our newest service, Bow-Wow Fit Club—a mobile dog gym that brings exercise right to your doorstep.
We primarily serve the surrounding communities, including Red Bank, Shrewsbury, Navesink, Holmdel, Colts Neck, Little Silver, and the surrounding Monmouth County area.
I think we are best known as a boarding kennel where we truly take care of your dogs as if they were our own. We’ve been doing this for nearly 30 years, so we have a tremendous amount of experience caring for dogs with all different personalities, needs, and routines.
We’re also a little different in that we’re pretty no-frills. We don’t believe in adding a bunch of unnecessary services or charging you for every little thing. When your dog stays with us, we feed them, give medications when needed, provide playtime and attention, and take care of them. It’s all part of caring for your dog.
We can also take care of your dog’s grooming before they go home, provide daycare and training, and now offer mobile fitness through Bow-Wow Fit Club.
At the heart of our brand is trust. We want our customers to know that we’ve been here for nearly 30 years, we know what we’re doing, and we genuinely love the animals in our care. When you leave your dog with us, we want you to have the peace of mind that they’re being cared for by people who love them just as much as you do.
Any advice for finding a mentor or networking in general?
I think networking really comes down to relationships—and being genuine.
Over the years, I’ve built relationships with local veterinarians, customers, other business owners, and people in the community. I’ve found that being honest, genuine, and trustworthy goes a long way. When people know that you truly care about what you do and the people you serve, those relationships naturally grow.
As far as finding a mentor, I don’t necessarily think you have to find just one person and call them your mentor. I believe you can learn something from almost everyone you meet. Every business owner has their own way of doing things, and you can take pieces of what you learn from different people and apply what makes sense to your own business.
My mother has been running our family laundromat, The Wash House, for many years, and we still bounce ideas off each other. I also talk with other business owners and compare how they handle different situations. Sometimes just hearing another person’s perspective can make you look at your own business in a completely different way.
My advice would be to build genuine relationships, ask questions, listen, and don’t be afraid to learn from other people. You never know who might teach you something that makes a real difference in your business.
Pricing:
- $60.00 -$70.00 per night boarding
- $35.00 daycare
- $85.00 average start price for grooming
- $45 trial run on dog treadmills
- Free evolution for training
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.bowwowbedandbath.com
- Instagram: bowwowbb
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BowWowBedBath
