Premium dog park Off Leash has closed after less than six months in business. Located at 142 South Main Street in Alpharetta, Off Leash opened to much fanfare July 15, having re-imagined a former Eckerd/Rite Aid into a modern, upscale dog park, and restaurant & bar.
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The notice, emailed to customers, added:
"As we navigate this transition, we want to assure you that our primary focus is on taking care of each of our valued members. Prior to year end, we will be processing prorated refunds for all eligible accounts."
It's unclear what, if anything, may be planned for the space in the near term, but the company stated they are "optimistic about the exciting opportunity to reimagine the use of the beautiful space."
A second Off Leash planned for 240 and 250 E. Trinity Place in Decatur, slated to open this upcoming spring, is canceled.
ToNeTo Atlantafirst reported on the planned dog park in May 2022. The concept reportedly experienced construction delays in Alpharetta and Decatur which surely took a financial toll on the business.
Off Leash was backed by Lonnie Cooper Ventures, a subsidiary of Cooper Holdings, Inc., and was co-founded by Wendy Newman. Cooper's other businesses include CSE, a sports and media talent representation company, yah (You Are Here), "an experience agency," and IfThen, a creative and digital agency. Off Leash, and its membership model and food and beverage offerings, was vastly different and likely more expensive to operate than any of Cooper's other ventures.
The closure of Off Leash comes a time of time of transition and turmoil in the so-called premium dog park industry.
Bark Social, started by Luke Silverman and Jeff Kurtzman, opened its first location in North Bethesda, Maryland in early 2021 and another in Baltimore's Brewers Hill neighborhood later that same year. Bark Social later added locations in Northern Virginia, Philadelphia, and in Columbia's Merriweather District this past October. The company filed for bankruptcy and closed all of its locations on November 21.
Stephen Ochs opened the first Fetch dog park in June 2018 in Atlanta's Old Fourth Ward. The following year, plans were announced for locations in Charlotte, Raleigh, Birmingham, and Nashville's Germantown neighborhood, but none ever opened. Georgia locations were later added in Alpharetta, Buckhead, Upper Westside, and Columbus, but there has been no recent word of expansion in other markets.
The Drafty Dane, from Brennen and Emily Matthews and their business partners, husband and wife Fitz Johnson and Suzann Wilcox, after its own challenges and setbacks, opened on Roswell Street in Marietta on November 29. The business, like Fetch, has booze, but relies on food trucks for food offerings.
Skiptown, a Charlotte-based startup, was opened by Meggie Williams in Charlotte's South End neighborhood in August 2020. The business, first called "Skipper," is named for Meggie's dog. Skiptown features a bar, but like Fetch and Drafty Dane, relies on outside vendors like food trucks for food offerings. The differentiator for Skiptown is that in addition to being a dog park and bar, they also offer daycare, boarding, grooming, and training in a more "all in one" environment.
The company secured more than $27 million in funding in 2022 to fuel growth. A second location opened in Denver October 4th followed by a third on Arizona Avenue in Kirkwood November 23. Mike Rotondo, most recently CEO of Altitude Trampoline Park, and before that, the same position at Edible [Arrangements] and Tropical Smoothie Cafe, was named CEO of Skiptown earlier this month.
A lot of money has made its way into this industry but time will tell if it will turn into more... or just a pile of dog poop.
Did you ever visit Off Leash? Have you visited any of the other dog parks? What would you like to see open in place of Off Leash in Alpharetta?
Please share your thoughts below.