Barkin' Creek

Making great hires for a niche business

A dog food kitchen and grooming spa needed candidates with a unique blend of soft and hard skills to support their growing business. After struggling to find suitable candidates on other hiring sites, they switched to Indeed and made 35+ amazing dog-friendly hires for a wide range of roles.

A dog business built by dog-lovers

Barkin’ Creek is an Austin-based dog food kitchen, wellness spa, and daycare facility founded by Flint Beamon and his husband, Jeff Springer. The duo opened in Fall 2015 to serve hand-made dog food like the Yam & Duck meal and Pumpkin Molasses Cookies. If that sounds more like human food, you’re not wrong. According to Flint, all the dog food is human-tested.

When Flint and Jeff decided to grow their business, they searched for candidates on a hiring site affiliated with a local university. They were shocked to receive zero candidates for a fun part-time role in doggy daycare. Especially after paying a big monthly fee.

That’s when they switched to Indeed. In just two years, Flint and Jeff hired 35+ dog-friendly employees for their three—soon to be four—locations in Texas.

Barkin’ Creek’s approach to hiring

Barkin’ Creek is a tough business to hire for because they need candidates who are not only great Managers, Chefs, and Groomers, but who are also passionate about dogs. Through trial and error, Flint came up with a winning process for finding candidates who have the right blend of soft skills and work experience to support his business.

In fact, besides a handful of word-of-mouth referrals, Barkin’ Creek’s found their other 35+ hires exclusively on Indeed. When we asked Flint what stands out most about Indeed, he said it’s the ease of using the Indeed platform.

Job titles + descriptions

Indeed’s search engine lets prospective candidates find great opportunities at companies like Barkin’ Creek, but without a great job title and description, prospective employees might never find them.

Flint has found that it’s best to use job titles that people actually search for. Barkin’ Creek’s job titles are simple and industry-specific like “Dog Groomer” instead of a job title that could be mistaken for someone who cuts human hair like “Hair Stylist”.

According to Flint, a job description should be both honest and appealing to job seekers. A job description should be inspiring and reflect your company as a whole. It’s a great place to speak to your company’s mission, values, and what you’re trying to achieve in the world.

Qualification tools

Since Flint needs talented employees who also love dogs, he makes use of Indeed’s Applicant Qualifications page to make sure applicants meet his criteria. Why spend time interviewing, or even reading a resume, of a person who jumps every time a dog barks?

"I love the fact that I can set the parameters on what is an absolute no and what is a must-have"

Flint Beamon, Founder
Barkin' Creek

Company Pages

With so many dog-related businesses in Austin, it’s important for a brand like Barkin’ Creek to stand out as a great place to work. Flint claimed his Indeed Company Page to show prospective employees what Barkin’ Creek is all about with a mission statement and plenty of dog photos.

“Take the time to build out your Company Page to attract the right people,” Flint says. When a candidate can read about your company’s culture and values, they can better determine if it’s a place they want to work.

Flint’s advice to employers

1. Great job descriptions matter
   Be honest and clear about expectations for the role, and make sure your job description makes your company sound appealing.
2. Applicant Qualifications save you time
   Ask questions with the goal of weeding out applicants who aren’t a good fit. If a dog food chef isn’t willing to commute to Barkin’ Creek’s kitchen, it’s a deal-breaker.
3. Show what you’re about
   If your Company Page doesn’t make candidates fall in love with your company and reflect what you’re trying to achieve in the world, you’re doing a disservice to yourself.

Barkin’ Creek’s tools of the trade:

• Job descriptions
• Applicant Qualifications
• Company Pages

Wrapping up

Every business has its hiring challenges, whether it’s a dog food and wellness spa like Barkin’ Creek or any other. The key is finding great talent who share your business’s mission and values.

Indeed helps businesses like Barkin’ Creek find the right candidates by providing tools that help employers get the word out about their job post and then find the right fit.

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