Unique dog boutique still going strong in South Haven

You might marvel how a keep catering to high-close treats, toys and sweaters for pet dogs can survive in a modest town such as South Haven.

It’s no surprise to Roxanne Leder and her workers at Decadent Canine.

“What we have located is canine are part of a person’s spouse and children,” reported Leder, a dog lover herself whose loyal pooch, Sandy, can be observed at her facet inside of the shop. “They’re the ones who greet us at the door when we arrive household from do the job. They give unconditional like.”

Canine owners’ affection for their animals has led to Decadent Dogs getting a person of downtown South Haven’s most loved retail stores more than the a long time.

Its recognition led Leder to make the determination in late 2022 to relocate her enterprise from its initial spot at 505 Phoenix St. to a larger place at 523 Phoenix St.

In January, the retail store re-opened in the former Phoenix Road Cafe, a different preferred downtown establishment, which has relocated to 259 Broadway Ave., and rebranded its name as Phoenix Avenue on Broadway.

“We wanted a more substantial house,” claimed Kendra Kingsbury, supervisor for Decadent Pet dogs.

“The puppies now have a lot more home to roam,” Leder explained.

Puppies authorized in a retail establishment?

Of training course, specifically when you occur to Decadent Canine. Leder and her team make a stage of encouraging pet entrepreneurs to carry in their furry close friends.

“Some days we see 60 dogs or much more,” Kingsbury claimed. “People are tickled when we guess the breed of their puppies.” Buyers are also tickled if the store personnel remembers their pet’s name.

“They enjoy it when we try to remember their dog’s names,” Kingsbury reported. “Sometimes we keep in mind the dog’s name a lot more than the customer’s title, but we usually don’t forget their faces.”

Getting to know customers and their canine is component of the key at the rear of the achievements of the retailer, which is a person of the couple of stores of its form in West Michigan, according to Leder.

“These days, youthful persons are owning fewer young children,” Leder said. “More people today are retiring. Pets have turn out to be portion of their family members. People feel great if they do anything awesome for their animals.”

Consumers who occur into Decadent Dogs do not have to appear considerably to pick out objects to be sure to their pups, or even on their own, as pet house owners.

Bakery-style connoisseur cookie treats are shown at the entrance counter. A exhibit wall close by showcases a vast assortment of canine toys. Harnesses, leashes, food stuff bowls and sweaters, specifically created for a myriad of pet breeds, can be identified in one more display area, alongside with ornamental pet blankets and puppy neckerchiefs. There’s also products catering to pet lovers, these as keychains, towels, fridge magnets, Xmas ornaments, slippers and apparel – all specialized to mirror a customer’s favourite puppy breed.

“We have so significantly enjoyment deciding upon inventory,” Leder mentioned. “This (high-end doggy products and solutions) has turn into a huge industry. We have way extra goods to choose from for inventory these times.”

One particular of the latest items is doggy beer in a can. It is labeled and promoted as “Good Dog Canine Beer,” but folks should not be alarmed. “It’s basically bone broth,” Kingsbury mentioned.

Leder has owned Decadent Canines for 12 yrs right after buying the enterprise from previous proprietor Cathy Thaler.

“When I moved to South Haven from Kalamazoo I wanted to open a business and was thinking of a single specializing in Michigan-designed solutions,” Leder said. “Cathy stated her retailer was out there and the numbers she showed me appeared great.”

Remaining a pet dog-lover herself, Leder made a decision to get the job done at Decadent Canines for many weekends prior to getting to be hooked into using around the organization.

“Do I really like canine plenty of to sell to doggy house owners?” she remembered imagining to herself at the time.

Immediately after numerous weekends of viewing Thaler’s enterprise design of having shop staff interact with puppy owners and their pets, Leder bought the enterprise.

“You adore the man or woman who loves the pet,” Leder stated.

Leder has also appear to love South Haven’s downtown group. She has been a staunch member and leader of the Downtown Association of South Haven above the decades, helping to organize downtown festivals and activities. 1 of her signature situations is organizing the doggy parades that just take area just about every calendar year for the duration of the slide and Christmas gatherings downtown. She also assisted commence the Providing Saturday event held throughout the spring months, downtown, wherever merchants agreed to donate a part of their proceeds toward many non-income teams.

“I moved to South Haven to be a element of this neighborhood,” she stated. “It’s a great location to live, function and take pleasure in.”